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Power Rankings - Week 14

Riot··1 votes·5,325 views
Welcome to Week 14 of Lolesports Power Rankings. We use a system similar to the Associated Press power rankings for College Football or Basketball - a panel of writers vote on who they think should be listed, and an aggregate is produced from combining their rankings. Our panel votes on these criteria, in this order:
  • Recent results
  • Predicted future performance
  • Historical trends (as they pertain to future results and present form)
  • The "eye" test (How good does a team look, relative to the rest of the world)
Our panel is available at the footer of this article, with each of their credentials and specialties. It is important to note that all our voters follow all five major professional leagues (LPL, OGN, GPL, NA/EU LCS) on a weekly basis. Make sure to tweet @Lolesports with your #LCSRANKINGS if you have feedback or let us know in the comments below. Here are our Week 14 Power Rankings. Current league record in parenthesis. Number of first place votes in brackets
  1. ( - ) Samsung Galaxy Ozone - [8] - OGN Champions - (9-1) A convincing 3:1 victory over incumbent OGN champions SK Telecom T1 K further solidifies Samsung Ozone's No. 1 spot in the Power Rankings. With each game, PawN looks more and more like the perfect fit for Ozone, especially on his favorites Nidalee and Yasuo. Ozone has the best vision control of any team in the world, purchasing pink wards straight from the fountain at Level 1 and establishing a commanding early lead in vision. There is little doubt that Ozone is the team to beat in Champions this season, with their one potential weakness being PawN's limited champion pool. Written by Alex Manisier
  2. ( - ) OMG - [1] - LPL - (20-2) For all practical purposes, OMG has clinched first place for the regular season of LPL and first seed into playoffs. When one considers their superior warding, their ability to capitalize on the weaknesses of whichever team they face, and their comeback potential, it's no wonder they've smashed through LPL this split. With grabbing first place at the cutoff, OMG are also set to represent their region at All-Stars, to the surprise of very few. The Invitational represents the first chance OMG will have to test their international prowess since Worlds, but until then, we doubt anyone will shake them from their perch. Written by Kelsey Moser
  3. ( - ) Najin White Shield - OGN Champions - (5-1)
  4. ( - ) CJ Entus Blaze - OGN Champions - (5-1)
  5. (-2) SK Telecom T1 K - OGN Champions - (5-6) Few would have picked SK Telecom T1 K to plummet so far after losing support PoohManDu to health issues, but fewer still would have picked them to win a single game against Samsung Ozone in their current state. The bad news for T1 K fans is that their recovery will not be instant - Impact seems to have not adapted to Patch 4.5 well, and T1 K's Champion Select phase suffers when not in the Masters booth. The good news is that their foundation is still strong, as evidenced in their one win over Ozone. NLB Spring will be a good opportunity for T1 K to develop as a team. Written by Alex Manisier
  6. ( - ) KT Rolster Arrows - OGN Champions - (4-2)
  7. ( - ) Samsung Galaxy Blue - OGN Champions - (5-1)
  8. ( - ) KT Rolster Bullets - OGN Champions - (4-2)
  9. (+3) Cloud 9 - NA LCS - (24-4) Cloud 9 emerged out of the NA Spring Split as both the top team in the standings and the most consistent. They sport a 24-4 record and a first-round bye in the playoffs. This is a dangerous team that is peaking at the right time. The accolades and awards show off how dominant a split Cloud 9 really had: three of the top-five KDA ratios in the entire NA split and three players named to the LCS All League First Team. From execution to champion variety, Cloud 9 should be the favorites to come out of the NA LCS playoffs. Written by Tim Lee
  10. ( - ) Najin Black Sword - OGN Champions - (3-3)
  11. (-2) Edward Gaming - LPL - (18-6) Edward Gaming had their worst week so far in LPL, doubling their loss record from three to six. Two of their losses were to first place OMG, ranked second on our list, but one was to last place Positive Energy. Despite this, Edward Gaming still played their game. They fell behind early in gold but managed to come back and only narrowly lost by an inhibitor turret in a base rase at 53 minutes. Most teams in LPL can have a strong early game, but only EDG has the coordination to throw them for a loop. Written by Kelsey Moser
  12. (-1) SK Telecom T1 S - OGN Champions - (3-4)
  13. ( - ) Taipei Assassins - GPL Champions - (19-4)
  14. (+1) SK Gaming - EU LCS - (20-11) When the season started, nobody had SK Gaming on their list for getting into the finals of the EU Spring Split. But now they are competing against Fnatic for the victory and the chance to become champions of Europe. They gained momentum in the second half of the split and became one of the best teams in Europe, if not the world. They've consistently beat the upper tiers of the LCS teams, and are now the favorites to win "El Clásico" once again. Written by Michael "Chexx" Kiefer
  15. (-1) Team SoloMid - NA LCS - (22-6)
  16. ( - ) Fnatic - EU LCS - (19-12) In the LCS, most teams are either held together by a few true stars, or comprised of a band of mediocre players with great synergy. Fnatic have created a roster with three star carries that synergize with their supporting cast. With their drive to innovate rekindled, Fnatic will be a real threat should they earn a place in Paris. Written by Trent Murray
  17. ( - ) CJ Entus Frost - OGN Champions - (4-2)
  18. ( - ) AHQ Esports Club - GPL - (17-4)
  19. ( - ) Counter Logic Gaming - NA LCS - (18-10)
  20. (NEW) ROCCAT - EU LCS - (19-14) ROCCAT have excelled at the pick and ban phase all season long, and their objective control is on par with the best. Their great weakness has always been the relative lack of power in the side lanes. This week, when Xaxus unveiled his stellar Jax skill, ROCCAT showed the world that they are starting to turn their weakness into strength. After a strong showing this Spring, and with another split to hone their skills, ROCCAT will be a team to watch as we move closer to the World Championship. Written by Trent Murray
Others Receiving Votes: Alliance, Gambit Gaming, Taipei Snipers, Team WE, IM#2 The Panel: Christopher "MonteCristo" Mykles - OGN Analyst and Commentator. Season 3 World Championship Analyst, esports veteran. Joshua "Jatt" Leesman - Riot Games LCS Analyst and Commentator. Veteran commentator of both Season 2 and Season 3 World Championships. James "Obscurica" Chen - GPL and SEA expert. Covers GPL for lolesports.com and watches all five major leagues regularly. Michael "Chexx" Kiefer - German born, Korean resident. TeamLiquid staff writer and Esports veteran. Expert on all things Korea. Regularly watches all five major leagues. Tyler "Fionn" Erzberger - TeamLiquid staff writer and OGN expert. Esports veteran and Freelancer for lolesports.com. Regularly watches all five major leagues. Thomas Watts - OGN expert and freelancer for lolesports.com. Veteran college football reporter. Regularly watches most of the five major leagues. Andrew "Glyceroll" Whitmore - Covers NA and EU LCS as well as Challenger for lolesports.com and surrenderat20.net. Regularly watches the five major leagues. Jack "NeoIllusions" Ho - TeamLiquid staff writer. Has covered OGN, NA and EU LCS for TL and lolesports.com. Regularly watches most of the five major leagues. Kelsey Moser - GosuGamers senior editor and LPL expert. Covers LPL for lolesports.com. Regularly watches all five major leagues. Mattias "Gentleman Gustaf" Lehman - League of Legends theorycrafter and statistics nerd turned esports journalist, watches NA/EU religiously and all five major leagues regularly. Team Inven - Esports veterans and OGN experts. Regularly watch every game of all five major leagues. Frank "Mirhi" Fields - Web Content Editor for lolesports.com. Esports veteran, watches every game of all five major leagues. Jason "Jayway" Wai - Web Content Coordinator and stats aficionado for lolesports.com. Watches OGN religiously and regularly watches all five major leagues.

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96 Comments

RATMpatta33 votes

The weird thing is that the same happened last split. C9 stomped everyone in NA, everyone got hyped and they were beaten right of the bat by Fnatic at worlds. Now we are exactly in the same spot, they do amazing in NA, but they haven't performed all that good in internation tournaments (falling to Gambit in Cologne and to Fnatic in Katowice), and still the same hype comes up.

Not to burst bubbles, but the chance of C9 deserving their current position in the rankings is low.

Limakoko80815 votes

Right after they lost to Gambit, they shat on fnatic at BOTA. Just though id share that with you since you conveniently left it out. Also at Katowice it seemed like a repeat of worlds, which means you can draw the conclusion that C9 didnt prepare for their games against fnatic(like worlds) as much as the chinese teams. With good preparation Cloud 9 can beat eu teams. Time will tell though

Mustrum14 votes

I don't think so. I have to agree C9 and also TSM are great teams with even greater room for improvement. The problem is they have no enemies apart from each other in NA, this can only lead to stagnation. Also esport is still being looked down upon in the USA.

While in Europe "new" teams appeared (Roccat, SK, Alliance) and challenged the old gods. This split was ridiculously even in EU, progress made by SK and Fnatic in second half was incredible. Roccat who was the king in the middle of the split was shut down so badly, but now look on them, they came back with improved strategy and playstyle. At this pace EU may stand a chance against level the Korea presented in the last Worlds.

Yeah, the last worlds. The most scary thing is the Koreans made their progress too, OGN is also even and full of surprises. SKT1K who melted everyone year ago was crushed so badly... Let's not forget about other Asian servers, I didn't tracked GPL and LPL, but I'm sure they made their improvements as well.

As it stands now, no matter the difference between EU and NA, we'll be crushed by Asians equally.

Limakoko80810 votes

Im just saying i thinks its stupid to discount NA teams just because of what happened in the past.

There are alot more high quality team in EU, theres no doubt about that, but i feel the top 3 na teams can hodl their own and potentially defeat EU team. Montecristo said so himself in summoners insight.

The reason being that this meta is much more heavily focused on rotations and team coordination; something that C9 have always been praised for. However fnatic went on an 8 game losing streak because theyre playstyle isnt the same.

Now idk what will happen at allstars or at worlds, but to blow off C9 and TSM just because of their past experiences is dumb.

Aewon6 votes

C9 didn't expect to beat either of the Asian teams they faced due to the hype, they said so both before and after the games. It sounds like they fell victim to the Asian hype and NA is trash bandwagons and figured they wouldn't need to prep for anyone either than WE and TPA. That being said, C9 holds a 4-4 record vs Fnatic overall, which is certainly respectable. I don't think C9 can just walk over any of the top teams from other leagues (except maybe TPA), and until they face Korean teams I don't see them climbing any higher. I do think that they can give almost anyone on this list a fair fight though.

MoRayy9 votes

Worlds was Cloud 9's first international competition ever. A pretty steep increase in the level of competition for only having one season under their belt. Not only that, but they were seeded into the Ro8 and not the group stages, which imo, is even worse since they got 0 international experience before facing Fnatic. While they are still losing in some international competitions, it's by closer margins and they're gaining more experience. I definitely would not count them out at all and I do think their position is deserved.

nin78 votes

Ok, they are quite good, probably even with top eu teams...may be even better...I don't think people is actually arguing about that.

The problem some people have with this power ranking is that they have not yet proved to be better than top eu teams and still they are above in this table, and the gap gets widder without games played...wich is surprising at best.

Of course there'll be reasons for this, but personally this is not the order I would position team at this point.

Aewon5 votes

I said this a few weeks back, but going on a 4 week losing streak is going to hurt your rankings. Given recent performance over the split and the past couple weeks, I think C9 has earned their spot. I do think that SK and Fnatic should be higher up than 14 and 16 though, probably closer to the 11-13 range.

ObserverofGames4 votes

yeah we all know you would position either GMB or FNC in the top 3 and then you don't care about the rest because you just want people to think that EU is number one.

the sagdaddy4 votes

OK so ya fnatic has done well recently. SO does C9. they gave C9 their postion due to consistincy in lcs which is more then we can say for any european team. Also C9 is consistent. and europe is alot more inconsisten. Fnatic who is propbably one of the top teamss in europe if not the top team in euorpe went on a 7 game losing streak for a period. C9 never lost anything more then 4 games. in short when Fnatic are on they are ON but when they are off they are OFF. This can again be shown in BOTA. C9 beat Fnatic 2-0 there. C9 is straight up more consistent. Also not to be rude but these people voting have actuall official credentials. What makes you think you know more then these people?

RATMpatta3 votes

The argument that this list must be accurate beacause experts made isn't really much to go by. Have the critics always been right about every single thing? Like how everyone of the critics picked SKT T1K as winner of the spring season of OGN or how Gambit was picked as winner of the spring season of the EU LCS. They aren't always right.

They currently have no international source to go by. The one I'm basing my points on are the latest international tournaments like IEM. By logical deduction we can say Fnatic was stronger than Cloud 9, even if only marginally. The european scene is much more competetive since even the lower and middle teams can take games of the top teams. In NA it's a lot different. There are currently only 3 teams in NA who are actually competetive, the rest are just so far behind.

The question is do you think that the bottom/middle teams of NA and EU are equal and NA's top is just much better than EU's top or do you think that the top teams are about equal and EU's lower teams are just much better than NA's. If you pick the first then the rankings here make sense, but when you look at the latest tournaments the second option is way more likely, rendering the placement of Cloud9 remarkable to say the least.

Trundizzle2 votes

Have the critics always been right about every single thing? Like how everyone of the critics picked SKT T1K as winner of the spring season of OGN or how Gambit was picked as winner of the spring season of the EU LCS. They aren't always right.

You need to realize predictions for the spring season is completely different than power rankings. At the beginning of the season, the power rankings showed Fnc and GMB above any NA team. Power rankings are exactly that. Predictions of how strong they believe teams are right now, not how they're going to perform tomorrow.

ObserverofGames5 votes

They also beat World Elite and TPA which you left out, also Gambit lost to TPA.

RATMpatta5 votes

Which is true, but WE is a mid table team in China who were on a horrible streak at IEM. TPA wasn't really as good as they are now either. Also not to forget that after Gambit lost to TPA they got back to also beat WE and get revenge on TPA.

And let's not forget that Gambit is only the number 5 team in EU right now (both regular season and play-offs). C9 is the best team in NA or at least top 2. C9 barely outperforming EU's number 5 and then losing to EU's number 1 doesn't really hype me up.

thresholden30 votes

Weekly Bitching Rankings Week 14-

1) EU Fans mad that C9 outranks all EU teams by 5

Expect no changes to the king of the LoL Bitching rankings, unless C9 loses in the playoffs or loses to EU at Allstars. This will continue to be the dominant bitch train until the above happens; in which case the top EU team will only be one rank behind C9

2) People that don't regular watch LPL bitching about OMG's second spot

While this train only appearing last week, its quickly risen from the bottom to the top and here we here. Don't let the fact that we have little to no data of comparison bother you, OMG is definitely not top 2. There are tons of people out there who regularly follow both the LPL and OGN who can analytically and thoughtfully explain their positions!

3) People that don't watch GPL bitching about TPA and AHQ even being on this list

This one would be higher since it does have some logical basis but there's not enough GPL fans out there to even argue back so this category likely won't rise further.

4) OGN watchers bitching about the 2-18th spots

Just to glad they have the humility of offering the rest of the world the last 2 spots.

5) LSPL Watchers who insist WE Academy should be on this list

There's only one or two of you out there but you guys do enough bitching for dozens of people.

Maek6 votes

You win one internet

RiotMirhi3 votes

I laughed. I'll admit it.

Tangysauce13 votes

"History will repeat itself." Season 1 Worlds - favorites TSM and CLG lose to a random EU team (Fnatic) Season 2 Worlds - comparing NA teams back then to CLG.EU and M5 in their prime would be too cruel Season 3 Worlds - people in NA finally have a spark of hope, and it's promptly extinguished by Fnatic This in itself speaks volumes about EU vs. NA

Nnovata4 votes

The S1 had fewer teams trying to get into the finals but still for an east asian to lose in a game.... S2 meh, S3 mm could have been more entretaining, S4 I expect something mind blowing.

NeoDeimos9 votes

You seem to forget that lowly Vulcun went 1-1 against Fnatic in S3. TSM stomped a Lemondogs team that won Summer Split (their second game occurred after both teams were already eliminated from advancement). And the first 2 games between C9 and Fnatic were very close. You also failed to mention that the career record between those 2 teams is 4-4, 50% for each side. These are FACTS.

Tangysauce4 votes

To be fair, Vulcan was the third place NA team, just like GMB, so it's relatively reasonable that they beat FNC; after all, they went 2-2 with C9 in the summer split. Also, if TSM vs. Lemondogs hadn't been a 2-0, I would have been very worried for TSM. At that point Lemondogs was a bunch of mediocre solo-queue players with very little synergy.

extra thïcc2 votes

The game between TSM and Lemondogs he was talking about was at S3WC, not BotA. This was back when they both had their old rosters https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuR3b4XrO64

CrOPhoenix6 votes

But fact is also that in every international tournament in the last 3 and a half years, EU teams had always better rankings than NA teams...

FlareCity12 votes

You guys may have forgot. C9 crushed both WE and TPA, people from the LPL and the GPL. So it isn't like C9 is all hype, they have real skill backing it up.

NeoDeimos9 votes

And a 4-4 lifetime record against Fnatic, something that the euros always seem to overlook when claiming that Fnatic is far and away the better team.

TheKaichou11 votes

Funny how some people here complain about the korean OGN fan boy's. Fact is Koreans are the best in the world at the moment. Example in Katowice the KT Rolster Bullets won, the way there playing now they stand no chance to the likes of Ozone. Esports been a mainstream thing in Korea for alot longer so it's further developed. Simple facts do you have to like it? No but being biased saying EU or Na could beat them or are on equal level is plain ignorance. Maybe in a few years when they catch up.

CrOPhoenix4 votes

I do however want to remember you worlds, where Ozone was arguably the 3th strongest team from Korea(after SKT T1 K and KT B), but still they got crushed by Fnatic in the grp stage, so it wasn't the Korean scene that was godlike, but SKT T1. I do agree with you that it is Fact that the Korean scene is the strongest in the wolrd, but not by far like some OGN fanboys think. In the current state of the Korean scene, while Ozone has great performances, they too have some bad moments, this opens even a bigger chance for non Korean teams to shine, I can't wait to see OMG play at All Stars and I will bet my money that they will come out aheand in this one.

unBiasedGravity10 votes

So happy to see C9 getting recognition for their incredible performance in the NA LCS! Having only lost to fan-favorites TSM one time, and consistently out-performing every other team in their league, I'd say they have the best shot at going toe-to-toe with some of the LPL and OGN teams.

Sinko10520 votes

they havent shown any sings of being better than eu teams. dominating own lcs doesnt mean they are better than eu teams it just means that eu lcs is more balanced. i dont dislike them i respect them because they are diligent and well motivated team. but again they havent shown much signs of being better than fnatic or sk. i do think that judging them as better than any eu team is biased and unfair because they havent proved they are better. for example they lost to an eu team FNATIC in iem. they are a good team but a bit overrated in my opinion

Limakoko8089 votes

Well they did stomp all over fnatic at BOTA. At Katowice you could argue that C9 just really didnt prepare for fnatic as opposed to the chinese teams. I mean the outcome was the same at worlds and C9 even stated that they didnt prepare for it.

C9, and other top NA teams, definetly have the capability to beat top eu teams atm. And Monte even said very recently that the top 3 na teams are better than top 3 eu teams.

imFaln1 votes

I really want to know what team is top team in NA. Just C9 TSM? and CLG?

Aewon5 votes

From recent games I'd say C9 > CLG > TSM, TSM has had a rough time adjusting to the past 2 patches and aren't quite as dominant as when they won 12 in a row to start the year.

Godkillah12 votes

> " At Katowice you could argue that C9 just really didnt prepare for fnatic as opposed to the chinese teams. I mean the outcome was the same at worlds and C9 even stated that they didnt prepare for it."

wait what kind of idiot logic is that? they lost to Fnatic at worlds and IEM because they didn't prepare for it?... you do realize those were huge prize pools unlike BOTA which was comparatively much smaller and far more meaningless.

If they didn't prepare for Fnatic at worlds after Fnatic went 7-1 in their group while C9 had nothing better at the time to do than say watch the freaking games and prepare for the teams they might face then they are even dumber than the logic you just used was.

Jathiel4 votes

I'm honestly not sure who is better between C9 and Fnatic, but the overall record between the two teams is 4-4. I do think however that C9 is a more consistent team, and much less prone to going on tilt, as demonstrated by Fnatic for half of the spring split. I am looking forward to when they meet next.

Limakoko8082 votes

For worlds, all the analysts and even members of C9 stated that they didnt prepare for it very well. they didnt study fnatic at all(I mean they left Kassadin open TWICE). And their gameplay just wasnt up to par. Wasnt even close to what theyve shown during that summer split.

Something VERY similar happened at katowice, if you were to compare the c9 who decimated chinese teams and the one who played against fnatic, you will see some discrepancies. Their communication, rotations and team coordination were just really off.

The most popular conclusion that was drawn was that they didnt prep for fnatic before going to katowice.

Im not saying if they did they wouldve stomped fnatic like at BOTA, but they sure wouldnt have lost so decisively that 3rd game. I mean C9 have constantly shown they can play well from behind, but they did horribly that third game.

Fnatic and C9 are both excellent teams, but i dont think you can definitively say which team is superior.

Aewon3 votes

I won't speak for worlds, but for IEM I Know C9 didn't expect to beat either TPA or WE and make it out of groups, hence the not preparing for Fnatic. Also Gambit.

Speaker Knockerz7 votes

Do you not watch LCS games? Lmao. If you think C9 isn't better than the EU teams then you're delusional. C9 outrotates and outvisions every single team in the EULCS. If you actually watch the EU LCS you can tell that they have no idea how to 2v1 and their rotations are generally lacking. The only team that is comparable to C9 from EU atm is SK.

Godkillah7 votes

of course thats why they beat the crap out of fnatic an EU team at IEM and Worlds so badly.... OH WAIT.

TheSequelsRBad21 votes

It is interesting, however, that cloud 9 and fnatic have the same number of wins against each other. In my opinion they are both excellent teams and i look forward to watching them play each other again.

dsalce7 votes

They are even on map count due to battle of the atlantic. Teams are pretty even to me, since both world and iem were very close 2-1 series

iDetermine4 votes

True that you can't say that C9 is better then any EU team but its vice versa as well. The wins that happened against them month ago doesn't matter anymore. Today were on a new patch and your playing against a team that is playing on a different meta which you never know will work out for them or not. You can make predictions from past results but since they don't play each other and also they are also doing well in their own region you could predict it would be a close game and wouldn't be any sort of stomp to each other.

ObserverofGames2 votes

Well and to be fair every time FNC has won a series it has been because they cheese level 1 which is extremely gay

ObserverofGames3 votes

similar to how eu mids are extremely overrated when Korean mids are by far better.

Waasäp9 votes

I dont get why Roccat would be over Alliance, doesnt make any kind of sense to me... Even tho im maybe a but bias, i still think Alliances are better than Roccat

jhuns2 votes

I would have agreed with you last week. But barring a miracle combeack in this game I'm watching right now, I think Roccat is showing they are better than Alliance right now.

Sinko1053 votes

roccat has really suprised me how well they have played and how they have kept their cool against experienced and seasoned players like gambit and sk. and right now alliance is losing to roccat. a team wich before the playoffs i thought they would be fighting in the summer tournament.and considering that roccat had a much harder quarter final opponent (id take copenhagen wolwes as an opponent over gambit any day) id say they belong and have earned their spot in the top 3 at the moment.im not a fan of theirs but its always a treat to see people evolve, thrive and suprise

BlazinNewel8 votes

Funny how c9 just climbs up 3 spots without playing a single game.. and OMG is going to get crushed by Skt t1k to show that OGN is the best league

NeverEverKills11 votes

No offense, but WHY THE HELL do you comment on power rankings EVERY SINGLE WEEK in this month insisting that WHATEVER TEAM IN THE REST OF THE WORLD WILL DEFINITELY BE STOMPED BY ANY KOREAN TEAM?

Sizao5 votes

To be honest I dont like these Rankings at all, in my opinion they've just not shown to be true. I mean FNC beat C9 recently and still they are 7 Places behind them.

NeoDeimos6 votes

Because it's not about just one series. By your flawed logic, XDG should be ranked ahead of both TSM and C9, Coast ahead of TSM as well, and even Prime Optimus ahead of SKT T1 S.

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