NA LCS Power Rankings | 2023 Spring Split Edition
Are you ready for the new 2023 LCS season? With the split starting in a few weeks, it’s time to update our LCS Power Rankings!
It was a rather hectic offseason for the North American region which means there might be a major shake-up in the teams’ rankings compared to last season. Without further ado, let’s jump right into it!
Image Credits | Riot Games
10. Immortals
Unfortunately, IMT are set to continue their streak of competing for the last places in the LCS. After a disappointing 2022 season, their new roster doesn’t look like it can make that many steps forward. The team kept their top-jungle duo of Revenge and Kenvi and changed the three remaining members, bringing in Ablazeolive (MID), Tactical (ADC) and Fleshy (SUPP).
While Tactical and Ablazeolive boast several splits of experience in the competition, they have been on a downward trend recently.All hopes will be Fleshy, the Turkish rookie who has been playing competitively only for a year. Previously on the Turkish team NASR, he’s the player IMT are betting on this season.
9. TeamSoloMid
“From stars to rags” is the right way to describe TSM’s presence in the LCS. One of the OG organizations that were home to some of the greatest domestic talents is now in one of the worst conditions possible, especially considering its recent results.
They are no longer an organization fighting for the top and with their 2023 roster, it seems like things won’t change soon. TSM lost their star player Spica (JGL) and his replacement Bugi doesn’t seem to have the same potential. Neo and Chime still have room for improvement but unless all the pieces work out perfectly, it’s hard to imagine TSM fighting for playoffs.
8. Golden Guardians
Golden Guardians have added two Korean players to its roster for 2023, importing Gori (MID) and bringing in huhi (SUPP). The two, together with River (JGL), will be the Korean trio that is going to work with two veterans like Stixxay (ADC) and Licorice (TOP).
Compared to TSM and IMT, their chances of fighting for playoffs are much higher, but a lot will come down to how Gori performs. The mid laner had a strong split on PSG Talon but before that, his stint on FPX was disastrous, as he was benched during the Spring Split. If he keeps up a high standard, GG’s stocks are inevitably going to rise.
7. Counter Logic Gaming
Counter Logic Gaming had the second part of the season in 2022, finishing fourth in the regular split and in the top six at the LCS Championship. The domestic talents seem to have come along well, as they were the only LCS team to make no changes to its roster.
Image Credits | @clgaming Twitter
Having said that, it looks like most teams that competed with them have made several upgrades so CLG will have to surprise us even more if they want to continue their streak of success. One thing is certain, their synergy will be better than most teams at the start of the season, so that might give them a headstart that can become crucial for the standings.
Currently, they are number seven on our LCS Power Rankings, but they can be anywhere between fifth and eighth by the time the splits ends.
6. Dignitas
Digniats’ roster is quite an exciting roster that can be a major underdog in this 2023 LCS season. The lineup is made up of established veterans and a player like Spawn (ADC) who is eager to prove himself in the scene. Armut (TOP), Santorin (JGL), and Jensen (MID) can be a great trio if things click well and IgNaR (SUPP) will bring the experience to help his partner improve even more.
That said, their peak potential might not be as high as the other teams above them. Expect Dignitas to be a consistent team throughout the season, fighting in the mid-pack.
5. 100 Thieves
100 Thieves have gone with a very risky strategy, bringing in the two legendary veterans Bjergsen and Doublelift. If the Danish mid laner performs like he did last season, there shouldn’t be problems but Doublelift currently is still an unknown quantity. We don’t expect him to be at the bottom of the pack of marksmen but there are some insane ADCs in the league this season.
Coupled with two young talents like Busio and Tenacity, 100T is betting that the stars will all align. Therefore, they are currently fifth in our Power Rankings, even though they have the potential to aim higher.
4. Evil Geniuses
Evil Geniuses managed to keep its most important pieces of last year’s lineup, with Ssumday and FBI coming in as the new members. The first can be considered a side grade compared to Impact, while FBI can be on a similar level to Danny if put in the right conditions.
Danny’s situation is still a big question mark that needs to be solved but his substitute should be good enough to hold until he (eventually) comes back. That said, the most interesting thing to see will be how Kelsey Moser can develop its coaching staff and imprint her work into the team: its success will impact EG’s expectations for this season.
3. Team Liquid
Team Liquid come from one of the worst seasons in recent years, missing out on Worlds after spending a lot of money to get import players like Bwipo and Hans Sama, as well as Bjergsen. Despite TL CEO Steve mentioning that they will cut on spending, the team he was able to put together is not too shabby, with a full team of Korean players and a head coach. Former T1 top laner Marin will lead the team of Summit (TOP), the latest world champion Pyosik (JNG), CoreJJ (SUPP) and the two new rookies Haeri (MID) and Yeon (ADC).
There are all the elements to do well and a lot will come down to how the two new rookies will perform. But what’s most exciting about this team is the possibility of witnessing a team that has similar characteristics to the LCK teams due to the presence of all these imports. If they can apply the same aggressiveness or composure that Korean teams are known for, TL might become the undisputed number one in the league. Until that happens, however, we think that there are two teams that will be stronger than them.
2. Cloud9
Cloud9 only made one change to its roster, swapping out Jensen for Diplex in the mid lane. While Jensen was necessarily the weak link of the team, it was true that he wasn’t the main reason why C9 was winning last year. Berserkers (ADC) and Zven (SUPP) are formidable bot lane that is working fine, while Fudge (TOP) and Blaber (JGL) have been playing together for quite a while so there is some synergy going on as well.
Image Credits | Riot Games
Bringing in someone like Diplex is a smart way to see whether he can elevate the team to higher highs. And even if he doesn’t work out, the team can still try to field EMENES who is waiting in the academy team. Cloud9 seem to have their ideas quite clear, which inevitably puts faith in them for 2023. Expect them to be fighting for the title.
1. FlyQuest
For those who followed the off-season roster moves, they know that FlyQuest are the undisputed number one. Given the roster they put together, it’s hard to imagine anyone dethroning them in the LCS.
First, they brought in Impact, one of the best top laners in NA and a great weakside. Second, FQ picked up Spica (JGL) and Eyla (SUPP): the first is still one of the best junglers in the league, despite the disastrous season on TSM. Eyla, on the other hand, proved that he’s a player worth investing in.
That said, the two most important pieces are the two Korean imports VicLa (MID) and Prince (ADC). The latter hard carried Liiv Sandbox the whole season and almost brought them to Worlds, while VicLa was a solid mid laner that could keep up with the best mids in the LCK. Considering how competitive the LCK was in 2022, it’s not hard to imagine that these two players are individually talented players.
With world champion head coach Ssong leading the team, it’s not hard to imagine that the team has all the elements to dominate the league, which is why they are our number one in the LCS Power Rankings.
While the LCS’s broadcast schedule might not be as convenient, there are definitely teams that are worth keeping an eye on! If you want to follow the action, remember to watch the start of the Spring Split on Thursday 26th January!
Following a somewhat disappointing performance at the Mid-Season Invitational, NA teams will have a chance to improve with the start of the League Championship Series Summer Split 2021.
This means that it is time to update our LCS Power Rankings! We are going to take a look at the transfers of each team and see how they stand compared to the others. Without further ado, let’s jump right into it!
10. Golden Guardians
Starting off the list, we have Golden Guardians, once again in last place. After a disastrous spring split (3-15 record), the organization decided to swap out top laner Aiden “Niles” Tidwell and support Leandro “Newbie” Marcos with the players from its Academy team Colin “Solo” Earnest and Jonathan “Chime” Pomponio. The goal is to try out a new roster, hoping that the team can make a better performance than the previous split.
© Golden Guardians / invisalign
Despite these roster swaps, we think that GG has too many things to work on and their players is their biggest weakness. The idea of going with low-cost players with the hope of finding a rising new star paid off last year with Can “Closer” Çelik, but players like him don’t come around that often. It will be another rough split for GG’ fans, who might witness another really poor split.
9. FlyQuest
One of the main problems of the LCS is that there are very clear bottom-tier teams. The main issue is to the aforementioned GG’s case: organizations want to “save” money by hiring rookies or relatively worse players, hoping that they can grow during the split. FlyQuest follows the same line of though to Golden Guardians. They didn’t make changes to the roster so far and are looking to raise their competitive level by working on the synergy between players.
FlyQuest
It is very sad to see players with past highs like Eric “Licorice” Ritchie and Han “Dreams” Min-kook, but they might be past their peak. The new rookies, raised from Academy teams, didn’t impress either.
FlyQuest will try to make it to playoffs: their goal, however, might not be in reach.
8. Immortals
Immortals have made quite a decent impression during spring split, ending with a 7-11 record in 7th place. Considered by many the worst or 2nd worst team before the start of 2021, IMT showed that there is indeed some potential in the players.
Mohamed “Revenge” Kaddoura and David “Insanity” Challe showed that they are LCS-level and this might be the split where the team will reach its best form. Watchout for Immortals: they might be the dark horse for playoffs. Not to mention that they were able to beat some of the top teams as well, so keep an eye on them.
7. Counter Logic Gaming
Out of the bottom teams in the standings, CLG is the one with the biggest pressure of having to deliver. Not being able to make playoffs with two European imports is inexcusable. The Spring Split performance can be forgiven, considering that Mads “Broxah” Brock-Pedersen wasn’t able to play due to Visa restrictions and the overall synergy was hindered.
© Counter Logic Gaming
Now that CLG had time to work on that between splits, CLG must meet the expectations of reaching playoffs will they make it? For us it will be very close: it might be a 4-way battle between IMT, CLG, DG and EG.
6. Dignitas
Speaking of Dignitas, they were the big surprise of spring, managing to end 5th with a very positive record (11-7). Their full domestic team worked really well, showing that they have what it takes to fight for playoffs. They were able to mesh veterans like Joshua “Dardoch” Hartnett and Zaqueri “aphromoo” Blackwith the rookies like Max “Soligo” Soong.
Despite the positive results, Dignitas is still a mid-pack team: they weren’t able to win against the higher-placed teams like TL or C9. For this reason, Dignitas is considered the “benchmark”: if you’re able to beat their record, then you’ll likely be in playoffs.
5. Evil Geniuses
EG definitely wished for a better result than a mere 6th place. With players like Daniele “Jiizuke” di Mauro and Jeong “Impact” Eon-young, their goal was to be a top 3 team. EG had a quite poor Spring and are looking to rebound in the Summer Split.
This is why they decided to make a change to the roster: ADC Matthew “Deftly” Chen left. Replacing him will be the Academy player Kyle “Danny” Sakamaki. Evil Geniuses hope that their new marksman will be able to make an exploit that will take them to where they want to belong. It will be a hard feat, though, considering that there’s a team that committed a lot more to get there.
It remains to be seen how this new roster fares in the upcoming season. We place them just shy out of top four contention.
4. Team Solo Mid
TSM falls into the same category as EG: they were hoping to make it back to the top with a world-class player like Hu “SwordArt” Shuo-Chieh. Instead, after a strong regular split, TSM’s performance dropped during playoffs, losing to Team Liquid in a somewhat one-sided series (ended 3-1).
The main issue TSM has is related to their consistency: they do have the peak performance to fight the best but they’re not consistent enough to win. We’re hoping to see TSM bounce back in summer and make an exciting 4-way battle for the top.
3. 100 Thieves
100 Thieves was unquestionably the winner of the off-season. Not only the team hired former LEC mid laner Felix “Abbedagge” Braun, but also the former Head Coach of Cloud9 Bok “Reapered” Han-gyu.
With Kim “Ssumday” Chan-ho becoming a resident, 100T had a new import slot that they could fill. The roster is surely upgraded compared to spring and the guidance of Reapered might be what the team needed to become one of, if not, the best team in NA.
All things considered, 100T is the big new contender for the Championship. It might take some time to see the team’s full potential, but we expect them to be up there by the time playoffs come around.
2. Team Liquid
TL was very close to win the Championship during Spring: a cheesy strategy by C9 was what gated them from going to MSI. Nonetheless, TL remains the biggest enemy of Cloud9 and we expect them to continue fighting out for the top spot during summer. Jungler Lucas “Santorin” Tao Kilmerwill be back and will want to redeem himself following the health issues that made him sat out during the final. He will surely want to help the team get what they missed out in spring.
Nicolaj Jensen / TL
In terms of strength, we think that TL is the most all-rounded team: they have top players in every role and the coaching staff to help them achieve the objectives. Will this be the time TL returns to glory? We will find out in Playoffs.
1. Cloud9
It is to no surprise that Cloud9 is once again at the top of our power rankings. The winner of Spring Split made a debatable showing at MSI: they made it to the Rumble Stage but fell short, losing the possibility of playing in the semifinals. Still, C9 did win against DAMWON Kia, demonstrating that the roster is strong enough to fight against the very best.
There is, though, consistency issues that must be fixed if they will participate at Worlds. The team adressed them by sending Zven over to the Academy team and promoting Calvin “K1ng” Truong as the main ADC. How this new change to the roster impacts the over all strength of the roster remains to be seen.
That being said, Cloud9 is our top team and we expect them to at least make it to LoL Worlds. It’s the best chance NA has at the International Stage and most people are aware of that. Will they deliver?
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