FantasyLCS week 10, Who Do I Start?

With two weeks to go we're down to the wire on FantasyLCS and so it's out with just the risky picks and now it's time to talk about anyone who's a good bet this week.

In EU:

Fnatic and Alliance are generally pretty good bets in EU. This week though they face off against each other and it's generally not smart to bet on both sides of the coin if you cant ensure it'll be a back and forth points explosion like some of the more ridiculous Crs vs C9 games. Fnatic vs Alliance could be a barn burner, it could be a 1 sided stomp, it's hard to tell in advance. Both teams are safe bets so if you're not stuck deciding between them I'd be confident in either set of players. If you're forced to choose between an Alliance player and Fnatic player though, I'd say run the Fnatic player as they're on a bigger up swing as both team and players right now.

ROCCAT and SHC members are both looking good this week for the same reason. Both teams look for the most part on the upswing, despite ROCCAT's score they did play much better last week than in previous weeks, and both face a struggling SK and a floundering Gambit.

Finally there's Millenium who while not having the easiest schedule this week, they face Fnatic on day 2, are generally good bets. Creaton was the highest scoring player last week, both Creaton and Kerp still sit as 2 of the highest total points generators for FantasyLCS. It's hard to ever discount them as good picks.

In NA:

LMQ are top of the table and ridiculous points generators. XiaoWeiXiao and Vasilii round out the top 5 total points scorers for FantasyLCS. Less talked about though is support Mor who has been quite the incredible scorer lately including over 44 points last week as a support. On top of their habit of generating lots of points LMQ also has a decent schedule facing CoL, who they're 3-0 over so far, and C9 who they've gone 1-2 against so far in close games.

If you believe in Curse's whackadoodle ability to womp top teams this is probably the time to start them as they face CLG (2-1) and EG (1-2) this week. But remember it's a risk if the good curse shows up you can expect Voyboy, Quas, and Dominate to top the points for the week much like they did last week, if the bad curse shows up though you can expect abysmal single digit numbers.

TSM is a big question mark this week. They face CLG (1-2) who's been slumping recently and EG (3-0) so in theory they should at least hit decent numbers. It's hard to predict though as they've made a roster change bringing in former Blaze support Lustboy. What is for certain though is BENCH GLEEB! Since Gleeb is no longer starting he wont score you any points, time to grab up someone else until Lustboy becomes available for use next week.

Fantasy LCS Week 7, Who Do I Start?

Low Risk:

Altec: The EG adc continues to perform week after week averaging mid 30s in points for 2 games. You can safely expect that he'll turn in a middle of the road performance and wont harm your fantasy chances. If EG happens to do exceptional as they will quite randomly decide to do from time to time he could even put up incredible numbers, though EG has yet to have a consistent enough week to make that happen. 

Team Solo Mid: Not usually members of this list but a lot of people have shied away from them in fantasy since the start of the split and to be fair they have an equal win/loss to Milennium who often grace this list. Most importantly though TSM has one of the best possible weeks this week. They have an impeccable record against the bottom 3 teams, 2-0 against CoL, EG, and Curse and they face all 3 this super week. If your fantasy leagues are anything like mine there's probably at least Gleeb floating free. Snap up TSM members and start them this week, there's a strong chance they're going to go 3-1 at least. 

Creaton: With a few exceptions the MIL ad carry has put up some impressive numbers. He is one of the few to routinely out score Altec week after week thanks in large part to his team's tendency to have long chaotic games regardless of win or loss. This week MIL faces 3 of the easier teams in EU and the always chaotic Fnatic, anything could happen. What will happen though is Creaton scoring you plenty of points. 

Kerp: Highest scoring Fantasy player this split and MIL could go anything from 2-2 to 4-0 this week. If Kerp is a free agent or riding your bench you're just bad at fantasy LCS. 

Medium Risk:

Millenium: While Kerp and Creaton are usually huge points batteries the rest of MIL is generally quite spotty. As mentioned before however, MIL has a relatively safe super week and good potential to pull between 2 and 4 wins. The fact they may only go 2-2 this week makes the rest of the team a bit of a risk but the payoff if they manage 4 wins will be monumental. 

Edward: After their unfortunate Visa problems for London Gambit came back with a renewed fire and Edward managed to stand out among them. His play was incredible and he put up astounding numbers for a support despite Gambit ending the week 1-1. If that same fire is alive in Edward this week he could leave you swimming in fantasy points as Gambit has a decent schedule ahead of them. If they play well Gambit has a reasonable expectation of ending the week with 2-3 wins. 

High Risk:

RobertxLee: CoL continues to garner a reputation as the blue turtle shell of NA LCS taking wins off the top teams. In those wins it's almost always Robert who gets rolling in a huge way to win them the game. This week CoL has 2 strong chances for Blue Turtle Shell action, as well as an always close competition against EG. A bet on Robert could payoff if their tendency to knock games off the best of the league holds true. 

Overpow: Roccat have not looked good at all recently, I broke down why here. Despite that they have shown flashes of their old selves in their most recent games and their coach is finally in house helping them out. Roccat has the easiest super week they're going to get this week, If Veggie being in house and those flashes of Roccat are ever going to amount to anything this is the time it should happen. It's the epitome of High risk to put Overpow on your starting lineup at all but if he's ever going to payoff this split this week is the best chance of that happening. 

Fantasy LCS Week 6, Who Do I Start?

Low Risk:

Altec: Despite EG only managing 3 wins so far this season Altec has been incredibly valuable for fantasy teams. He's dipped below 30 pts only once and he was still very close with 28. Altec continues to be an incredibly safe bet. 

Medium Risk:

RobertxLee: With all their troubles this season it's little wonder that CoL players rarely make this list, but if anyone deserves to it's Robert. He's been instrumental in most of CoL's leads and all of their wins. CoL doesn't have many wins, but they have started to gain a reputation as Giant Slayers and even hold the 1-0 lead over both teams they face this week. If there's ever a time to bet on CoL it might be now, and that bet should probably land on Robert's shoulders. 

Quas: Curse's top laner has been putting in stellar performances, and good fantasy numbers lately. Curse faces the only two teams lower than themselves in the standings this split, and while they've dropped a game to CoL previously Curse seems determined to prove that a fluke. If Curse comes out strong in the same way they have been it will likely have a lot to do with Quas and Voyboy.

Voyboy: Much like teammate Quas, Voyboy has had strong showings and seems desperate to silence the naysayers. If Curse sees victory over EG and CoL expect their solo laners to shower you with Fantasy points. 

Woolite: The CW ad carry has certainly put up his share of impressive point totals cresting over 50 points more than once despite a 2-10 record for the team. None the less he's also had his off weeks posting barely over 10 points which makes him a bit more of a risk than Altec. This week CW faces Fnatic and Gambit, two teams that have struggled nearly as much as CW itself this season. There's a good chance this will be one of Woolite's strong weeks. 

High Risk:

Niq: It's no secret Gambit has struggled since Alex Ich left and Niq was asked to fill his shoes. However, while the team has struggled it's certainly not been the fault of Niq who's reasonable performances tend to generate around 30 points a week. Niq has posted strong numbers on occasion though cresting the 40 pts mark and this could be a week he repeats that. Gambit faces SHC and CW both teams are struggling and both games could swing either way. If Gambit comes out on top expect Niq to generate quality points, but if Gambit falls Niq's lower numbers might make the difference in your match up. 

Fantasy LCS Week 5, Who Do I Start?

Coming up on the halfway point in the LCS split and it's given us some good patterns to look at for trying to predict who will or wont come out huge this week. Unfortunately the nature of the beast means that sometimes unpredictable things happen, like SHC falling apart in their easy week. Even events that couldn't be predicted before they happened though can still be useful. While it is too early to call the SHC train derailed it's made it clear that they should still be assessed as potential risks for this list.

In the interest of readability I've added player names to the front and underlined them in case you don't care to read the explanation as to why they're rated how they are.

Low Risk:

Altec: Since his debut in the LCS the EG adc has shown an impressive ability to generate fantasy points in any conditions. In week 1 losing to top rated Dignitas he scored over 20 points, a score usually seen from victory. Last week Altec scored 28 points despite going 0-2 which was better than about half the ADCs available in fantasy LCS including usually strong performers like Sneaky, Tabzz, and Imaqtpie. This week EG faces CompLexity and TSM, they have a strong chance of going 1-1 and even a reasonable chance at a 2-0 with the help of their new jungler Helios. EG is a good bet and that makes Altec an excellent bet.

Medium Risk:

Kerp: It's no secret Kerp has a tendency to generate ridiculous points when winning. This week Millenium faces ROCCAT and Fnatic which means there's a reasonable chance for at least 1 MIL win. Kerp is inconsistent which makes him a bit dangerous, but MIL typically wins off the back of Kerp and means that betting on him in a potentially winning week can payoff big.

Creaton: Much like his teammate Kerp, Creaton has been known to put up incredible numbers when he does well. With Milennium looking at a 1-1 week Creaton is not a bad bet to score a few extra points from your flex or ADC positions.

Helios: EG is looking at a good week this week and any wins they pick up will depend a lot on the pressure applied by their new jungler Helios. He already showed his skill last week generating early leads for EG proving he's not a bad bet when EG wins.

High Risk:

Overpow: ROCCAT showed signs of life taking down SHC last week. This week they face the two weakest teams in the EU LCS Gambit and MIL. If ROC is going to have an upswing this is the most likely week for it and it will largely swing on Overpow's ability to carry. He's a dangerous chance to take but if ROC is back that shot will payoff huge.

Diamond: Gambit has struggled to return to their former glory after the loss of mid laner Alex Ich, but Diamond is clearly still a large part of what carries Gambit victories. If ROCCAT's unable to repeat last week's performance it will be Diamond and Gambit who reap the rewards.

Fantasy LCS Week 4, Who Do I Start?

Back once again with another week of risky pick suggestions to help you get a leg up on the other guys. This focuses not on the popular obvious picks like Dig or Alliance players, and instead searches for the hidden gems potentially worth tons of points such as Kerp or Altec.

Low Risk:

This is the last time SHC is going to get a mention here short of a monumental losing streak, which is unlikely. MrRallez was the no risk pick of the team all last split but the entire team has really come together incredibly well since then. It's a good play to grab up anyone on SHC this week as they have relatively easy competition in MIL and ROC. Pay special attention to Impaler who's the most improved player in the EU LCS, and Mimer who's one of the highest scoring top laners this week. Mimer especially has extra points potential in his back pocket. This week Rengar is enabled and Mimer is well known as one of the best Rengar players in EU.

I talked about Altec previously and he's going to continue to sit here in the low risk section as long as he keeps being amazing. He put up strong numbers in defeat in almost every game and when EG turns it on Altec comes up huge, scoring 40 points thanks in part to their surprise win over C9 last week. In addition while EG faces tough competition this week both CLG and LMQ have a history of overconfidence problems that could allow another flash of EG brilliance like the one that took down C9. Plus EG has heavily suggested that Korean star Helios will be playing for the team in place of Snoopeh this week, his OGN experience could be just what the struggling EG needs to turn things around.

Medium Risk:

Kerp has had some shocking runs already in the 3 weeks of the LCS and there's potential for him to do it again this week against Gambit. The fact that Kerp has put in some negative points value games earns him medium risk status but we should also remember he made up for it that same week with a 40 point domination over the Copenhagen Wolves.

Speaking of the Copenhagen Wolves their carries Woolite and CowTard definitely deserve a spot right about here. While they do face SK this week making them a medium risk they also face ROC who've simply not been able to right their sinking ship of late. When CW wins CowTard and Woolite often end up drowning in fantasy points and CW has a strong chance of victory over ROC. If your flex is looking a little weak either player could make the difference between victory and defeat for your fantasy team.

High Risk:

Pobelter, much like his teammate Altec, often scores massive fantasy numbers when EG wins. What makes him risky though is his poor scores in defeat. EG is definitely a wild card this week if Helios plays and or either of their opponents get over confident EG could put up incredible numbers and that would make Pobelter one hell of an investment.

Fantasy LCS Week 3, Who Do I Start?

Continuing the series from last week I'm back again with some suggested players if you're looking to branch out from your roster of C9 and Alliance players and take a little risk in hopes of big rewards. Just like last time I wont be going over the picks everyone knows are dependable like Sneaky or Shiphtur, but rather the ones who are risks but have potential for big gains on the week like Kerp in week 1 or Altec last week.

Low Risk:

For week 3 the big low risk high potential reward tickets are Curse members. In their two games last week against C9 and EG every Curse memeber except for IWDominate raked in more than 20 fantasy points each despite ending the week 1-1. This week they face CoL who are again playing with a sub, this time in the jungle, and a struggling TSM. Curse is likely to at minimum go 1-1 and pull similar points to last week, but there's also a good chance they take down the struggling TSM in a close bout that could generate a mountain of points.

Medium Risk:

The Copenhagen Wolves players turned out to be the surprise stars of Week 2 with Woolite and Cowtard generating the highest scores for the week. The result was especially shocking after their rather poor super week where multiple players had more than 1 game of barely generating 1 point. CW went 1-1 against SHC and Roccat last week and this week they're in for two more potentially close fights against Gambit and Millenium. Despite that the lack luster performances of super week are still fresh forcing the CW players to be rated a medium risk, but if they come through the payoff will be totally worth it.

While they faltered last week it's hard to forget the incredible super week performances of Millenium players. This week MIL faces CW, which has a lot of potential to be a close match generating plenty of points for both sides, and SK who's own slow play style leaves lots of openings for MIL to generate a surprise win or at least pick up some respectable fantasy points. Millenium players are a risk but the potential for another amazing outing from Kerp is still there and that makes them worth a shot.

I'm not sure if I even need to mention MrRallez here at this point, but I'm going to do it one more time just to be safe. While it's true SHC faces tougher competition this week it's hardly worth abandoning Rallez. Throughout last split Rallez was the breakout star of his team with great numbers in victory and strong numbers in defeat. He should consistently bounce between low and medium risk pick depending on the strength of SHC's competition. Expect him to put up reasonable this week against strong opponents and return to a top points generator next week against easier competition.

High Risk:

You probably thought I was crazy to recommend Altec so highly last week but then he went and generated 31.44 points in 1 win and 1 loss. Altec's strong performance actually managed to beat out usually strong performers like Froggen, Vasilii, Jesiz, XiaoWeiXiao and more. Now that was admittedly EG facing relatively easy competition. This week EG faces two of the best teams in NA and the chances of a win for the team are incredibly slim. Despite that Altec still has potential to put up big numbers, in super week he put in incredible performances despite EG going 0-3, including a score of 8/3/2 against Dignitas who they face again this week. This is only the 3rd week of Altec's LCS career so I'm not willing to lock him in as the MrRallez of NA, but he's certainly trending in that direction and that makes him a potentially huge asset for your Fantasy LCS roster.

While MrRallez has spent more than a split putting up convincing numbers in every game he plays the rest of SHC faltered for the majority of last split. That seems to be over however as all members of SHC have generated a combined total of over 100 points across their 6 games, something few outside the ADC or Mid roles have accomplished. Those strong numbers suggest that everyone on SHC is worth the risk to start, but this will really be the telling week. Despite the slump Fnatic remains a talented team, and Alliance is the strongest force in the EU LCS right now, if SHC can put up strong numbers against both this week it might be time to consider all the members in the same category as the dependable MrRallez.

Fantasy LCS Week 2, Who Do I Start?

If you're like most Fantasy LCS participants you likely snorted in derision at that one guy who started Kerp before last week's LCS, and then devolved into tears as Kerp decided to generate the most fantasy points of anyone in week 1. Now you're looking for a way to get that same leg up on the competition with a risky pick. Well you're in luck cause I've got a short list of the low, and high, risk high reward picks to try to grab a few surprise points in week 2. 

Low Risk, High Reward:

It's common knowledge at this point, but bears repeating that MrRallez is the best semi-unconventional pick for week 2. MrRallez has had a habit of generating strong numbers, even in games that were heavy losses for his team. Week 2 sees MrRallez and the SupaHot Crew face off against the struggling Copenhagen Wolves, and the even more struggling Gambit Gaming. Both GG and CW have some of the weakest bot lanes in Europe making it almost guaranteed that Rallez will be able to carry both SHC, and your Fantasy team to victory. 

People seem to be of two minds about the Millenium players, some have leapt onto the hype train completely, others point to the strength of their opponents and remark that MIL won't do as well in week 2. The reality is a bit more in the middle. Despite their abysmal record last split Millenium has always been a strong fantasy points earning team. Their strong individual players and excellent early game strategies helped them get out to many early leads. It wasn't until their mid-late game where their inability to close games would rear it's head and they'd have those leads turned around. Their history of mid game troubles suggest that even in losses Millenium can be expected to post reasonable numbers, and if they should win... well we've already seen Kerp post the highest numbers of anyone in the LCS in week 1. 

Medium Risk, High Reward:

The rest of SHC. While SHC does have a relatively easy week 2 lined up for them they still warrant a medium risk assessment. They're medium risk because unlike teammate MrRallez the rest of SHC do not have a history of putting up huge numbers in defeat, if Europe decides to be good old unpredictable Europe this week starting SHC members into a defeat could lead some people to get burned. Even in the face of possible EU inconsistency taking a shot on an SHC member is a reasonable bet, especially if there's no one better available. 

After their somewhat Abysmal super week many people abandoned the Fnatic players, apparently forgetting the streaky nature of the team. While Fnatic's slump from All Stars did continue in week 1 there's some hope in the form of the wins they did pick up at the end of the week. Fnatic still has very strong players who can generate incredible numbers when they're winning and in week 2 they are up against a relatively reasonable schedule in the form of Gambit and Millenium. If the Fnatic slump is over starting their players could generate some of the best numbers in the LCS this week. 

While most people will likely scoff at this placement the numbers still show that Altec is a strong sleeper pick for Fantasy LCS. In his 3 losses with EG during super week Altec posted a 3.5 KDA, better than Doublelift, thanks to his total score of 14 kills, 6 deaths, and 7 assists. The only reason Altec appears to have been so low scoring on the fantasy LCS website is because of that game he missed lowering his potential score. If Altec can continue to generate scores like this it wont matter if EG wins or loses he'll still be a strong, safe pick on par with MrRallez. I only list Altec as medium risk, instead of low, because we've got just the one week to look at, but Altec certainly has the potential to be one of the best sleeper fantasy picks in the LCS. 

High Risk, High Reward:

Despite the entire team's struggles during super week CompLexity's RobertxLee showed why he is the breakout star of the team, and why I'm recommending him here, in their win against Cloud 9. His incredible 8/1/3 performance that game generated most of RobertxLee's fantasy points for week 1 and showed us all just what he can do if given the opportunity. Week 2 could be that opportunity. While mid laner Pr0lly will sadly be absent for the team they still face likely the easiest possible competition in the form of EG. RobertxLee remains a risk because we've only seen the one breakout performance from him in the LCS, but he's proved both in that game and in the challenger scene that he can run rampant over people. If CompLexity can generate an early lead for Robert there's a strong chance Robert will generate incredible numbers this week. 

Obviously I left off the more obvious teams and players because everyone knows teams like Alliance and TSM will consistently do reasonably well, but if you think there's a lesser known pick I missed, or if you just think I've got it wrong, leave a comment with who and why.