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Power Rankings - Week 12

Riot·4/3/2014, 3:36:42 AM·0 votes·3,992 views
Welcome to Week 12 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 12 Power Rankings. Current league record in parenthesis. Number of first place votes in brackets
  1. (+1) Samsung Galaxy Ozone - [4] - SKT Masters - (4-1) | OGN Champions (4-0) Samsung Galaxy Ozone ascends to No. 1 in the Power Rankings following the fall of SK Telecom T1 K. They swept CJ Entus Frost this past week, and managed to stage a tremendous comeback in the second of those two games. The roster change putting PawN in place of dade has worked wonders for the team. With the wins, Ozone has clinched the No. 1 seed in Group B and have to be considered one of the favorites to win the entire split. Written by Thomas Watts
  2. (-1) SK Telecom T1 K - [5] - SKT Masters - (5-0) | OGN Champions (3-3) SK Telecom T1 K falls for the first time in the Power Rankings. Not only that, this is the first time anyone even voted for another team to be No. 1. The genesis of the fall has been seen over the past weeks as they've been pushed by numerous foes, and suffered a loss a few weeks ago to SK Telecom T1 S. The coup de grace was T1 K's summary destruction at the hands of the KT Rolster Arrows. For the first time in months, SK Telecom T1 K looked completely outclassed by another team on the Rift. They will not make out of the group stage in Champions Spring, and how they respond to this adversity will be a major storyline for the Season 3 World Champions going forward. Written by Thomas Watts
  3. (+1) OMG - [3] - LPL - (15-1) After the first week of the second round, OMG remains strong. They may have looked a little shaky against their sister team, Positive Energy, at the bottom of the list, but they proved they're still capable of pulling out different strategies and dominating late games. In a time of rankings upheaval in Korea and China, OMG has remained reliably dominant, and it's only natural that the team should continue to climb. Written by Kelsey Moser
  4. (-1) CJ Entus Blaze - [1] - SKT Masters - (3-2) | OGN Champions (5-1)
  5. ( - ) Najin White Shield - SKT Masters - (2-2) | OGN Champions (3-1)
  6. ( - ) SK Telecom T1 S - SKT Masters - (2-2) | OGN Champions (3-1)
  7. ( - ) Najin Black Sword - SKT Masters - (2-1) | OGN Champions (3-1)
  8. (+6) KT Rolster Arrows - SKT Masters - (3-2) | OGN Champions (4-2) Although the Arrows gathered a lot of hype in the weeks leading up to Champions Spring, their inconsistent play seemed to be an obstacle in the way of real success, much like the old Xenics Storm roster. Yet, under KaKAO's leadership, the Arrows have flourished. The raw talent of their new players has been cultivated by Ssumday and KaKAO's meticulous play, to the point where they have been able to take down even SK Telecom T1 K. With a guaranteed berth in the round of 8, the Arrows are definitely the 'new' team to watch in Champions. Written by Alex Manisier
  9. (-1) KT Rolster Bullets - SKT Masters - (0-5) | OGN Champions (2-4) | IEM World Champions (7-0) Since coming back from a successful, if shaky outing at IEM Katowice, the Bullets have shown promise on home turf. A 1:1 split against group opponents Samsung Blue as well as NaJin Black Sword have given fans hope in the reformed Bullets squad, the same one that was dismissed as being the result of poor management decisions after a disappointing Masters performance. The efforts of head coach Lee Ji-hoon have gone a long way towards rebuilding the team, and their Baron control has been a treat to watch. Written by Alex Manisier
  10. (-1) Samsung Galaxy Blue - SKT Masters - (3-1) | OGN Champions (3-1)
  11. (+2) Edward Gaming - LPL - (15-3) Since their devastating defeat at the hands of OMG, Edward Gaming has failed to lose a game in LPL. They are on a four set (eight game) win streak and even managed to crush LGD Gaming, the only team besides OMG to take a game from them, in the second round. Though EDG have something of an uncertain early game, they've proven themselves well-versed in team fights and only need one 5v5 win to turn the tides. Written by Kelsey Moser
  12. (-1) Cloud 9 - NA LCS - (20-4) Thanks to CLG, Cloud 9 have once again tied TSM for the lead in the NA LCS. Sneaky rose to a higher level of play in Week 10, and the team continues to make great in game adjustments. They also never stop innovating, with progressive picks like Soraka in the mid lane. The NA spring playoffs look to be a full on brawl for the championship. Cloud 9 will have to continue to grow and find new surprising picks if they hope to remain on top. Written by Trent Murray
  13. (-3) Team SoloMid - NA LCS - (20-4) Despite a tough loss to CLG, TSM remains one of the most exciting teams in the LCS. Unfortunately for the NA veterans, it appears that CLG and Cloud 9 have caught up to them. TSM are still the heavy favorites against any other team, but will have a tough road to the spring split crown when they come up against their fellow top 3 teams. Written by Trent Murray
  14. (+1) Taipei Assassins - GPL - (13-0)
  15. (NEW) SK Gaming - EU LCS - (17-10) Rising from the very bottom of the EU LCS standings, SK Gaming have proven themselves over the second half of the split. Finishing 1st place in the EU LCS after a complete roster overhaul, they’ve come an incredibly long way in terms of strategy and synergy since their first game. Sporting a powerhouse jungler, Svenskeren, SK Gaming dominates their opponents early on in the game in order to get the lanes to thrive into the late game. It’s onwards and upwards for SK Gaming, and if they can keep up this pace they could even content with top dogs like TSM and others very soon! Written by Andrew "Glyceroll" Whitmore
  16. (-4) Gambit Gaming - EU LCS - (14-13) The fall continues for Gambit. Champion experimentation has failed time and time again. Darien and Genja have looked inconsistent, and while Alex Ich and Diamondprox are playing very well, the team synergy, objective control and decision making in the mid-game have left Gambit looking helpless in their last few games. Despite a strong performance against ROCCAT in Week 11, Gambit is now alone in 5th place behind SK Gaming, Fnatic, ROCCAT & the struggling Alliance.
  17. (+1) Fnatic - EU LCS - (16-11) Parity still exists in the EU LCS, but Fnatic's recent stretch of success propelled the team to second place in the standings after a strong Week 10 and good start to Week 11. Whatever consistency issues plaguing the team look to be in the rear-view window after the shot of confidence at IEM Katowice. Everyone on Fnatic, most notably Enrique "xPeke" Martinez, is peaking at the right time. Europe's best team at the end of the LCS split may be Fnatic yet again. Written by Tim Lee
  18. (-1) CJ Entus Frost - SKT Masters (2-2) | OGN Champions - (4-2)
  19. (-3) AHQ Esports Club - GPL - (12-1)
  20. (NEW) Counter Logic Gaming - NA LCS - (16-8) The decision to bring in dexter as a jungler has paid dividends for Counter Logic Gaming, but a team does not topple giants such as Team SoloMid through an improved early game alone. All members of CLG have shown growth over the spring split, with the Rush Hour duo of Doublelift and Aphromoo being especially impactful. Yet, to attain the victory that has eluded them for three seasons, CLG will have to step up their individual decision making to drive their excellent map control and rotational decisions.
Others Receiving Votes: Alliance, LGD, Team WE, ROCCAT 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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79 Comments

Jareba4/3/2014, 4:09:38 AM10 votes

CLG Win record is incorrect, they stand at 16-8 not 12-10.

Pharaun4/3/2014, 4:10:00 PM7 votes

all you need too see to know this list is complete bullshit is TSM and c9 ranked above every single EU team, when it's freaking obvious EU region is a lot better and has many teams who compete for the top. Not just a two horse race and CLG being a good 3rd. Fnatic was in shitty form yet they beat c9 who are the top team in NA. Then you see most people who vote are actually americans/asians and 1 german guy who lives in.. YES KOREA :D I know you want NA to be better than EU, but at the moment they are not and I think TSM and c9 would be happy if they would make the playoffs in EU. Top10 teams from Korea based on all those international events? OH right there was just one event which a Korean team won, but does that make 10 korean teams who never played on an international stage better than the rest of the world? No it doesn't. Worlds showed Koreans had the best team, but their other representatives got beaten by two european teams. But a few months later 10 korean and even 2 US teams are above every european team. So being top 10 in korea and beating all the crap US teams is enough to be above teams that made it to the semi-finals of both recent major international events. Crap rating is crap :(

Avada Kedavera4/3/2014, 3:55:29 AM4 votes

I can't believe SK Telecom T1 K lost to KT Arrows. But I think that still doesn't warrant a drop from their rank at #1, because every team no matter how good loses a game once in a while i mean its been 164 days since the last series SK T lost to a team which was Samsung blue. Plus there were factors such as Poohmandu playing the support role and i have heard that he didn't know he was playing support until the last day and didn't have time to refresh himself with the play style. But anyway they lost and i think we will see them at the next world championships at least.

Wrath of Kon4/3/2014, 4:10:14 AM4 votes

I fail to see why gambit are even in the top 20..... They have consistently lost to lesser teams in both the LCS and IEM.... Do they have top potential? yes but they also have the potential to face relegation!

Bonermonster4/3/2014, 5:51:14 AM3 votes

Who wrote the CLG blurb? The last part about individual decision making feels so true. Thanks

BlazinNewel4/3/2014, 4:46:00 AM3 votes

It was pretty clear through IEM katowice the Gap between Korean scene and rest of the world including LPL is pretty big. I understand the fact that IG and WE wasn't the best representatives of LPL but KTB also isn't really a top team in korea and they went undefeated throughout the tournament. And considering not to far ago CJ blaze totally crushed OMG (i know the team is a bit different) it is a good indication that OGN is much stronger than LPL in every aspect and seeing OMG rise while NJWS and CJ blaze hasn't had any "huge" losses is puzzling.

Also seeing Bullets ranked higer than Blue is confusing too, Blue beat KTB after they came back from Katowice numerous times, I don't know if they are trying to make western fans less sad by making them think EU got crushed by a top team in Korea which is not true at all. I know this is power rankings and its totally based on opinion but Some of the placements of these rankings are going against FACTS,

To be honest if CJ Frost played any team in the top 11-20 They would most likely beat them and seeing teams from GPL being ranked 5 spots ahead of frost when clearly GPL is a weak league is puzzling also. It doesn't matter if TPA goes 2593-0 in GPL it was clear through Katowice GPL isn't a strong league nor TPA a top 15 worthy team.

BlazinNewel4/3/2014, 4:43:13 AM3 votes

KTB Ogn Champions record is incorrect they are (4-2) not (2-4)

Pharaun4/3/2014, 3:54:54 PM3 votes

How can actual people who work in League of Legends disgrace themselves like this? First 10 teams are from Korea? Edward gaming is the best non-Korean team in the world? c9 who got beaten by fnatic a month ago are 5 places above fnatic and above any European team which is totally ridicilous if you actually watch the level of play in EU and NA. Even FIFA isn't this freaking bad at making rankings =( Alliance who are far more impressive than SK-gaming lately and didn't need to rely on RIOT's shitty decision to keep them on top of EU LCS aren't even in the rankings. This list really looks like some totally random koreans decided to make a LoL ranking based on nothing. I know you maybe don't realize how bad this list looks and how little sense it makes, but maybe let people vote. Even if someone who doesn't know anything about LoL is voting it simply CAN'T be worse than this.

ApexPred4tor4/3/2014, 12:47:09 PM2 votes

sorry but skt t1 k remaining nr2 is just dumb. in theory they arent even top 8 in korea right now and yet theyre still on rank 2.

PradaLOL4/4/2014, 11:38:25 AM2 votes

This rank is pretty fair enough. EU teams are so terrible in Team Fight and Lane, only know some strange trick to beat Chinese and korean teams. If u saw IEM.u will understand why. with a so fk delay patch than other world, thats make so much difficult for the chinese teams. Even so ZZtai dominate Xpeke in midlane. WE and IG are right now so terrible in LPL. so plz tell me how can EU or NA teams to beat OMG and EDG or SKT?So i dont know why should ppl put NA and EU teams in TOP 20. They should all behind TOP20.

Seagrove4/3/2014, 10:26:16 AM2 votes

KaKAO's picture at the top means so much more today than it would have two weeks ago. Also, it's nice to see a third NA team doing well enough to even be considered for the top 20.

3X15T3NC315P41N4/3/2014, 4:37:49 AM1 votes

Taipei Assassins 13-0... They are back and they are gonna stomp at Worlds!

Zaz004/7/2014, 8:58:14 AM1 votes

I agree that this list is very biased. Everyone thought EU was the worst region before the worlds last year and sure they didn't win but they did better than all the NA teams who didn't even make it out the group stages. (C9 got a bye) They also beat Ozone who were the best team from Korea.

Now they are again considered the worst. lol this panel has no idea.

Shadzenn Reak4/3/2014, 11:52:59 AM1 votes

Yay!! CLG is finally on the power rankings. Can't wait for NA playoffs, that'll be a great battle between the top 3 teams.

BlazinNewel4/3/2014, 4:13:45 AM1 votes

So SKT T1 K got 5 votes to be number 1 while Ozone only got 4 but Ozone is number 1?