check some tier lists..(i know tier list doesn't mean much)
but why do people consider malz a strong tier 1 pick?
i just can't get a grasp of him. He just has 0 mobility and he relies heavily on his team to gather a good position in team fights.
which people is that
So why do people consider malzahar a strong pick?
Best guess is this:
got their MR buffed to a level that makes any reasonably tanky champion who purchases just 1 of those more or less invulnerable to most AP carries.
As such: that creates a pretty big divide between AP carries that have any agency in actually negating a fed jungler/top-laner and AP carries that just have no effect. Malzahar is one of a few mages that will reliably deal meaningful damage to opponents regardless of how tanky they get with his %Max HP burn, and unlike an AD mid he still forces a mix of armor/MR to be purchased by the opposing tanks and fighters.
Prooobably the TLDR of why 
is also considered pretty top-tier right now. 70 MR is just brutal.
He's incredibly powerful in the disorganized Solo Q environment, with a ton of his power loaded into winning lane and snowballing and literally a "no" button to enemy duelists and assassins.
0 mobility is not something that'd make a champ useless. One of the slowest champions in the game, Anivia, pops up semi-regularly in the LCS, and many similar mages like Victor or Orianna are considered powerful picks.
Being reliant on teammates is less of a problem in Yolo Q given how many people like to run off and play on their own. Besides that, he's actually a sufficient team fighter as an immobile mage due to his %Health Damage (meaning he can fight tanks perfectly fine) and his decent range (meaning he can stay really far back. Made better by the fact he doesn't need to overextend to reach the enemy squishies since he's perfectly fine hitting a Tank).
Good positioning is a skill thing. If you don't have a grasp on that, well...
People generally think champs that they lose to 1v1 are strong. Malzahar is pretty good in lane and in duels throughout the whole game but he is super weak in teamfights and any decent jungler will just camp him and get himself and his midlaner fed.
