League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) Week 9 Preview
By Wyatt Fossett ·
Two games remain as the middle of the pack war over minimal playoff space, Team Liquid cling to their lead, and Cloud 9 looks to top TSM for 2nd place.
The next two days will feature the best of the best, and the weakest of the west playing in their final week of the League of Legends Championship Series Spring Split. While we sit in the break before the LEC playoffs start, all eyes will be on the LCS this weekend.
There are plenty of things still to be decided in this regular season split. The middle of the pack is a gigantic car crash of twisted metals and uncertain futures. While the throne of the LCS has yet to be permanently awarded, it's the battle for the 2nd place looks to be the key performances to watch.
With two matches left to decide it all, there are some things we know for sure heading into Week 9 of the LCS. Here are a few headlines going into the final week of the Spring Split.
Lockpick Failed
The refreshed and upgraded 100 Thieves League of Legends team looked like they were going to make a huge splash in their third official year in the LCS. Team 100, on paper, is much improved over the 100 squad that won the 2018 Spring Split regular season (they fell to Liquid in the Playoff Finals taking 2nd place), yet here we are.
Heading into the final week of the season, the 100 Thieves remain drastically at the bottom of the standings. Interestingly -- thanks to a very open-door policy and the never-ending content focus of owner Nadeshot -- we have a very solid idea of their mindset as the Spring Split comes to a close. In their latest YouTube vlog, the team announced that some major changes are coming, but more immediate changes will also take place.
To conclude the regular season of the 2019 #LCS Spring Split, our starting roster this weekend will be:
— 100 Thieves (@100Thieves) March 22, 2019
Top: @FakeGod
Jungle: @Fragas
Mid: @Soligoms
ADC: @Bang
Support: @Stuntopolis
Hear more from Nadeshot on this week’s Heist: https://t.co/WcNHQ9JcHf pic.twitter.com/9dJiKW7eUe
Instead of basking in the failure of their superstar-stacked LCS team, the 100 Thieves are choosing to dress their very successful League of Legends Academy team for their final two Sprint Split matches. Benching their starters will hopefully be a wake-up call for the group of very talented underperformers. While the promotion of their young-guns will give the Thieves Academy players some mainstage experience. It’s a win/win for this organization at this stage in the season.
Liquids VS Solids
As they arrive at the LCS Arena with the lead in the standings, Team Liquid have a daunting weekend ahead of them. Even though they should win easily against the 6-10 Team Echo Fox on Saturday, Liquid have to face off against TSM on Sunday. Which could be a problem. It’s a head-to-head matchup that the boys from Liquid have lost once already this season, and TSM is nipping at their heels in the conversation regarding the best squads in the league.
With four straight wins, the solid familiar faces on TSM approach their Week 9 rematch against Liquid with a ton of momentum, and of course will hold that win from earlier in the split proudly above their heads as they take their seats on the mainstage.
It will be the most exciting matchup this weekend, and there’s a very good chance that Team Liquid will fall to TSM once again. If the two meet again in the Spring Split Playoffs, it could very well come down to regular season skeletons in closets deciding the victor.
The Playoff Picture
In the League of Legends North American Championship Series, the top six teams through nine weeks will advance to the split playoffs. Right now, the battle for that coveted final spot (6th) is flat in a three-way tie and will be the main focus heading into this last week of matches. The current tie is between Counter-Logic Gaming, Team Echo Fox, and OpTic Gaming.
While OpTic and CLG both play bottom-tier 100 Thieves, Echo Fox has to play against league-leading Team Liquid and that same CLG squad. If we were to harken a guess as to who out of the three 6th place teams has the best chance to make it to the playoffs, we’d have to go with CLG. They have looked weak at times, but their Week 9 matchups are against the 100 Thieves at 4-12, and the Echo Fox team that they have already beat this split.
Outside of that tie, the team of Clutch Gaming is still technically in the hunt for a playoff spot, and there is a chance that (with a 7-9 record) the Golden Guardians fall out of contention all together come the end of Week 9.
The battle for the throne could get heated come Sunday’s final matches as the TSM squad could easily see themselves rising to 2nd place overall, though the top seed is officially out of reach with three games in between them and Team Liquid. Cloud 9 (at 12-4) could steal the #1 spot if TL loses both of their games, and they win both of theirs. But that’s a whole lot to ask.
Currently, the league structure will see the top two teams getting a bye week in the first round of the playoffs, so the battle for 2nd place between Cloud 9 and TSM is one to watch near the top of the pile this weekend.
The LCS Spring Split Playoffs begin next weekend, March 30th, and will see the 3rd through 6th seeded teams fight to stay alive, and advance to the second round.