Which player wins top lane is determined by two factors:
The first is entirely random chance, and happens before the game even starts, but is one of the single most important factors in determining who wins top: Pick Order. If you pick first, you're blind, and at least two people on the enemy team will pick to counter you. If you pick after your opponent, however, you get to make the counterpick, and your lane is now free. The only factor that can change this is the second factor: Jungle Pressure. If you've been countered, the other guy is gonna know he's invincible and open himself up, allowing a merciful jungler to save the lane for you. The most powerful ally a cornered Nasus could ask for is his Lee Sin kicking the hapless enemy Darius into turret range. Jungle pressure, when applied properly by a solid jungler, outweighs all other factors in top lane. If you're a top laner, feel no shame in begging for scraps. You need them.
You may notice, neither of those two factors I listed were player skill. This is because skill is completely irrelevant in top lane unless the difference is phenomenally large. It doesn't matter if you're 'somewhat better' than your opponent if you locked in Darius and they went top Vayne with Grasp or Fleet. No amount of skill lets an immobile melee catch a mobile ranged champ with self peel that can't be itemized against. No amount of Oranges will let a Gangplank counteract Irelia "outplaying" him by mashing Q until he dies from full hp. The only hope for a top in this situation is the aforementioned jungle help, and even that can backfire if the lane is fucked enough.
What's my point here? My point is League is the snowballiest it's ever been, and having an edge before you even meet your opponent in lane means you may as well start the game a kill ahead and remove your opponent's agency from the game entirely. Something needs changed; either dialing back damage and the strength of snowballing, or giving Champions with weak early games some way to avoid getting all-inned at level 3 with no way to defend themselves. Top lane as it is isn't satisfying, it's frustrating. Picking the better Champion shouldn't outweigh playing better, but it does.
