Is there any point watching tommorows NA LCS after the play-offs spots are secured already?I mean will the teams still tryhard or smth, or it will be mostly casual-friendly games? Second Are there three seasons and in every season the winner of the playoffs in the respective region secures a spot in worlds,is that how it works?
I would be surprised if teams that are already eliminated play something fun instead of the "try-hard" mentality but honestly I doubt it.
There are 2(splits) in each region, right now we are nearing the Playoffs for the Spring Split and once the playoffs are done the representatives of each region makes an appearance at MSI for the 4-X place(cause we all know all 3 LCK teams will be either Winner A, Winner B etc). Once Korea wins MSI
Once MSI is done the Summer Split starts and similar to how the Spring split with Playoffs and finally Worlds.
After Worlds, we have the All-Star in which it's honestly kinda boring to me personally but it's decent to watch for a buzz.
Back when LCS was Bo1 in past seasons, usually when the playoff picture was decided with no jostling of position for tiebreakers or overtakes, it wasn't the most "must watch" it could be should there have been some. Historically, the EU LCS has been the most prominent region to play out some kind of fun match when the stakes are completely gone: a recent one being during EU Summer 2017 between Roccat and Misfits for both games. Most of the time however, teams will seek pride in themselves despite being eliminated but will play a less than compelling game to their form (yesterday's CLG vs OPT and UOL vs MSF were loose examples - where the hopes were over before they could even fight for it and it was nothing more than a shoulder shrug).
In the NA LCS case however, while playoffs are locked there's still that said room for jostling of position. So while it may not look like games may not matter for the outsiders, they are more than capable of playing spoiler and putting some fan doubt in teams that did make the cut if recency bias matters. I would watch and I will watch because the standings are still close.
As for the second question, I would picture each competitive year as five phases with Spring and Summer being the main competition:
Spring - The momentum season for teams to make the run for Worlds
Mid-Season - Hosts the Mid Season Invitational; a tournament for all Spring winners. Is often a meta shift period along with roster swaps in lieu of the more crucial Summer season.
Summer - The point that matters most where teams will push for a spot at Worlds
Worlds - Self-explanatory
Off-Season - More roster swaps, meta changes, and host of the post-season All Star Event.
Major region teams earn their way to Worlds by one of the following conditions:
_To elaborate more on 2, in the LCS past teams that do not make playoffs receive 0 points and teams that fall out in Spring Quarterfinals mathematically must make playoffs again in the Summer in order to get a chance to be in the Regional Qualifier. _
