Using Riot's Balance Framework on Viktor and Jhin

TL;DR: Using Riot's Balance Framework, both Viktor and Jhin are not eligible for buffs and yet Jhin is getting buffs while Viktor isn't when (arguably) Viktor needs them more? In the case of champions feeling bad, how does Riot determine which champions to buff if they dont fall under their criteria? Link to Balance Framework: https://nexus.leagueoflegends.com/en-us/2019/05/dev-champion-balance-framework

Riot did say that they created the Balance Framework to hold them accountable, so I thought I'd give it a go at it.

Before I start, I am going to say that I am a Viktor main so of course there will be a bit of bias, but I still find these results kind of interesting anyway.

Anyway, I was wondering that since Viktor felt kind of weak, I would use Riot's Balance Framework to see if he is eligible for buffs or not. So I went to u.gg (forgot where I heard this, but I think a rioter said its the site that matches their internal data the most) and globally checked the win rate of Viktor in each elo. This was done on 7/16/2019. I also included Viktor Top since a significant enough number of players played him top, so I did some math to include the total winrate of Viktor top and mid. After that I will have one exclusively done on mid lane Viktor since I do heavily favor Viktor mid personally. I still did one though combining Top lane Viktor simply because he was played enough to have a significant impact on the overall winrate and they also go for the same builds as mid Viktor. Anyway here are the results for mid and top combined by elo:

Iron: 53.39% winrate with 118 matches Bronze: 51.19% winrate with 7224 matches Silver: 49.78% winrate with 31758 matches Gold: 49.97% winrate with 42608 matches Platinum: 48.61% winrate with 20890 matches Diamond: 47.45% winrate with 7205 matches (2.6% presence) Master: 46.08% winrate with 217 matches (2.8% presence) Grandmaster: 50.30% winrate with 330 matches (2.6% presence) Challenger: 47.2% winrate** with 125 matches (2.3% presence) Pro play: Do not know exact number, but I'm almost certain that it is below 5%, considering how uncommon he is seen in pro play.

And here is Viktor mid exclusively:

Iron: 57.14% winrate with 119 matches Bronze: 51.13% winrate with 7944 matches Silver: 50.4% winrate with 35203 matches Gold: 49.75% winrate with 46883 matches Platinum: 49% winrate with 22435 matches Diamond: 47.35% winrate with 7527 matches (2% presence) Master: 46.91% winrate with 194 matches (1.9% presence) Grandmaster: 50.38% winrate with 266 matches (1.6% presence) Challenger: 46.51% winrate with 86 matches (1.2% presence)

So some things that interested me is that Viktor's winrate would decline the higher elo you are. I was somewhat surprised by this, considering Viktor is a moderately hard champion. However, I would disregard Iron, simply because of its absurdly low sample size. One theory I have on why Viktor has a good winrate in low elo is because people in that elo rarely ever see a Viktor and do not know how to deal with one. Especially since most people that play Viktor are probably mains due to his low pick rate (around 2-3% overall). But the higher elo you go, the more game knowledge players have, and know how to exploit Viktor's weaknesses harshly.

Despite these numbers saying that Viktor does not need a buff, I would beg to differ based on another champion Riot is buffing the very next patch that does not need a buff according to their own framework: Jhin.

So here are Jhin's winrates by every elo:

Iron: 51.43% winrate with 1919 matches Bronze: 50.21% winrate with 112866 matches Silver: 50.25% winrate with 327930 matches Gold: 50.42% winrate with 291052 matches Platinum: 50.32% winrate with 103155 matches Diamond: 49.61% winrate with 24423 matches (9.2% presence) Master: 49.48% winrate with 382 matches (5% presence) Grandmaster: 44.23% winrate with 529 matches (4.1% presence) Challenger: 47.89% winrate with 142 matches (2.7% presence) Pro Play: Don't know, but probably super low.

So according to Riot's own Balance Framework, Jhin does not need a buff either. So, why are they buffing Jhin? Probably because he does not feel so good to play at higher elos. Although it is less severe than Viktor's, Jhin's winrate does lower a bit the higher the elo you go as well. The patch notes even says "Adding some power into the part of Jhin's kit that rewards timing and coordination". In other words, they are rewarding skilled Jhin players who are able to more consistently hit their W root.

So why not buff Viktor for high elo, considering that his winrate is far worse than Jhin's the higher the elo you go? Because the way his kit is designed, it benefits more in coordinated play. Due to 2015-2016 and Tank Viktor Top, Riot has been immensely cautious in buffing Viktor as they think that he could immediately become p/b in pro play. But the factors that made Viktor so strong in 2015-2016 are gone now (less mobility champs at the time, Rylais, etc.) and Tank Viktor Top will not come back unless they buff his Q (which they won't do). So they should be able to give Viktor mains buffs that help people who are experienced with Viktor without causing him to be OP in pro play. Now what should they do; I dont know for sure. But I am leaning on the idea of either buffing his early game a bit or some QoL buffs on his ult to make it not so impossible to get at least one tick on the enemy champion.

That's just my idea, but the thing is is that both Viktor and Jhin don't feel the best to play atm in higher elos but neither of them fit Riot's balance framework requirements for a buff. And yet they decide to buff Jhin and not Viktor.

Currently I feel like Viktor is 'meh' but DOES have room for some small buffs that will help experienced Viktor players. And if Riot decided to buff Jhin to help out more experienced Jhin players, then why not buff Viktor for experienced Viktor players especially considering that Viktor's winrate deteriorates far more harshly than Jhin's the higher the elo you go? Especially if its a small and yet useful buff?