You're identifying elements of RNG and trying to connect them to elements of strategy adversely. You're isolating exactly one strategy and saying it's the only one on the table.
You do not have control over
Item drops
Card drops
Who you fight (except the game tries to match you with equal outcomes OR quick executions to avoid redundancy)
You DO have control over
What comps you want to build with what is given (enhanced by spatula)
What buffs you want to add with what you have (enhanced by items/spatula)
What comps you want to max with what's given
Whether you want to farm gold hard or flip cards to build your team (and when and in what order you choose this)
What pocket items and backline backups you're building into (spatula hoarding = pocket synergy as well)
What neutral picks you will put out to get an extra buff, such as a Ninja or a two-person synergy
And what synergies you try to buff with other synergies (more of a strat with what you're given).
So, to be clear, I have listed exactly 3 things you DO NOT have control over, that are based "100%" on RNG
And I have listed exactly SEVEN things you DO have control over that are based 100% on what you do with what you're given.
All I can figure from this item complaint is that people want to walk into every game playing exactly the same strategy, and having no control over items totally blocks that method of play. And I support that. YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO CHANGE DIRECTIONS AT ANY GIVEN PASS, and that is based on the decisions you made up to any given point, which identifies skill more than whether or not you got X item and better than just giving everyone an item to "balance" your losses supposedly due to the state of items/distribution.
As an aside, I have noticed that generally when you're facing #1 or someone else high up several times, the game is weeding out redundancy. Why make you play against 2nd place when you'll also lose? So it puts you up against first place, maybe in a ghost match (the other player isn't there effectively). If you can't beat first, you can't win. Though it is a bit more complicated than that.