The MSI break is over and the LCS Summer Split 2022 is back, let’s take a look at the LCS Power Rankings.
We are nearing the start of LCS Summer Split 2022 and rosters are pretty set at this point. During the break, there were multiple roster changes with rookies coming into the league, some new imports and veterans like Jensen coming back.
It was also announced that the studio will be open to fans, which was expected after last Spring’s stadium finals in Houston, and Evil Geniuses were crowned as the Spring Champions. So let’s take a look at how our teams stack up for the summer and on the road toward the Finals at Chicago’s United Center.
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10. Counter Logic Gaming
- Niship ‘Dhokla’ Doshi
- Juan ‘Contractz’ Garcia
- Cristian ‘Palafox’ Palafox
- Fatih ‘Luger’ Güven
- Philippe ‘poome’ Lavoie-Giguere
CLG as an org has been having a rough time in the last couple of years. The eight-place finish last year was the only non-bottom two finish the team had in the last five splits. Although important to keep in mind, they had a change in leadership and came into the Spring with a younger team built for the future.
Still, the team didn’t exactly meet the expectations. The only player who got the shine was ADC Luger and unless they improved considerably between splits, I don’t think they can keep up with the other teams who bettered their rosters.
9. Immortals
- Mohamed ‘Revenge’ Kaddoura
- Shane ‘Kenvi’ Espinoza
- Tristan ‘PowerOfEvil’ Schrage
- Lawrence ‘Lost’ Hui
- Lee ‘IgNar’ Dong-geun
Immortals came into the Spring Split with the hopes of making the playoffs. But they did not only finish last, but they also did not impress anyone with their gameplay. The team was heavily invested in the growth of Revenge, which couldn’t exactly show what he is capable of. For the Summer Split, they made some changes, probably in the right direction, but I don’t think it is enough for them to catch up with the rest of the league.
8. Golden Guardians
- Eric ‘Licorice’ Ritchie
- Milo ‘Pridestalkr’ Wehnes
- Nicholas ‘Ablazeolive’ Antonio Abbott
- Trevor ‘Stixxay’ Hayes
- Kim ‘Olleh’ Joo-sung
There is no denying Golden Guardians had a good Spring record, going 9-9 and finishing fifth. Still, when watching their games during the season, it was never reassuring. This team has some good players like Pridestalkr and Olleh, who had some good performances. But their players are also very prone to mistakes. It feels like the rest of the league wasn’t up to punishing them last split, but Summer’s tend to be different.
While I think they will be the last team to get a playoff spot, the fifth to eighth-place teams are pretty close in the rankings, and any movement in this range from any team shouldn’t surprise anyone.
6. TSM
- Heo ‘Huni’ Seung-hoon
- Mingyi ‘Spica’ Lu
- Huang ‘Maple’ Yi-Tang
- Edward ‘Tactical’ Ra
- Wei ‘Shenyi’ Zi-Jie
What a disaster the Spring Split was for TSM, and their problems weren’t just in the Rift. Multiple organizational issues with the CEO Andy ‘Reginald’ Dinh and the former coach Peter Zhang continue to surround the players, and we don’t know how they will get affected.
On top of that, the team’s quality of play wasn’t up to par for most of the Spring. They replaced their mid-laner by bringing in Maple, who is a known international talent, and the mid-lane was a big issue for them. But Shenyi is still with the team and we don’t know if the concern there is resolved or not. Still, the Maple transfer is a good step in the right direction, and it is reasonable to expect some improvement from players of this caliber.
7. FlyQuest
- Colin ‘Kumo’ Zhao
- Brandon ‘Josedeodo’ Villegas
- Loïc ‘toucouille’ Dubois
- Johnson ‘Johnsun’ Nguyen
- Zaqueri ‘aphromoo’ Black
After a 5-1 start in the first three weeks which they resorted to different drafts like the smite top, FlyQuest had a bit of a fall in the Spring. As a whole, the team has been playing great so far. There were a lot of question marks about the performance of Josedeodo, who answered them pretty well with a good Spring Split. They are at the top of these middle-class teams of LCS, but they have still some way to go before skipping a tier. Still, both their team play and individual talent should be enough to carry them to a comfortable playoff position.
5. Dignitas
- Noh ‘Gamsu’ Yeong-jin
- Kim ‘River’ Dong-woo
- Ersin ‘Blue’ Gören
- Toàn ‘Neo’ Trần
- Vincent ‘Biofrost’ Wang
For the last couple of splits, Dignitas has been the team to watch, first with their all-native roster and last Spring with their entertaining gameplay. But despite being a fan favorite team and having good starts, they’ve never been able to keep it up throughout a normal season.
Without being cruel, it was apparent to anyone who watch them last split that the top lane was a big problem. I enjoyed watching Fakegod never met the expectations this roster is putting up. With the change during the break, I’m expecting a more consistent performance from Dig throughout the Split, which should be enough to carry them to the top of the mid-table.
4. Cloud9
- Ibrahim ‘Fudge’ Allami
- Robert ‘Blaber’ Huang
- Nicolaj ‘Jensen’ Jensen
- Kim ‘Berserker’ Min-cheol
- Jesper ‘Zven’ Svenningsen
In the last two years, C9 summers have been near disasters. But this time around, the team went through most of the drama in the Spring, which hopefully means they can finally have a steady Summer Split. Of course, there are many changes in the roster but I think most of them are for the better.
The only question mark is what happens with Zven? Is he comfortable enough to support another ADC? Is he fitting the role well? If yes, then the ceiling of this roster is one of the highest in the entire league. But these things take time, so I don’t expect them to be at the top to end the regular season.
3. 100 Thieves
- Kim ‘Ssumday’ Chan-ho
- Can ‘Closer’ Çelik
- Felix ‘Abbedagge’ Braun
- Victor ‘FBI’ Huang
- Choi ‘huhi’ Jae-hyun
100 Thieves had a weird Spring, to say the least. They were the reigning champions and many expected a return to form. But other than Closer and Ssumday, who performed well above expectations, the rest of the team was in a slump. Even though they pulled themselves together for the playoffs unless Abbedagge, FBI and huhi can go back to their Summer 2021 form, I don’t see too many opportunities in which they can challenge EG or TL.
2. Evil Geniuses
- Jung ‘Impact’ Eon-yeong
- Kacper ‘Inspired’ Słoma
- Joseph ‘Jojopyun’ Pyun
- Kyle ‘Danny’ Sakamaki
- Philippe ‘Vulcan’ Laflamme
It is always tough to say, the champions aren’t the favorites the next split, but I don’t think they are. Remember, even though EG had an amazing lower bracket run to win Spring, their regular season performance was downright abysmal. Neither their teamplay nor individual performances were the same. Of course, I don’t think it will be the same but it isn’t unreasonable to assume they aren’t going to start slow, especially after a grueling MSI run.
1. Team Liquid
- Gabriël ‘Bwipo’ Rau
- Lucas ‘Santorin’ Larsen
- Søren ‘Bjergsen’ Bjerg
- Steven ‘Hans sama’ Liv
- Jo ‘CoreJJ’ Yong-in
Of course, the super team is the first in power rankings. Team Liquid was dominant during Spring and they had a good playoff. They lost to EG 3-0, but the unfortunate baron healing during Danny’s penta was a big part of it. This team is veteran enough to shake it off and start a new season fresh. Not to mention the talent they have.
Liquid’s top side was all top two or three in their roles last split. Although one can say Bjerg didn’t perform well and there was no competition, I have trust in his experience and work that he will be back stronger this summer. Bot lane of Core and Hans is hands down the best in the league, even when they didn’t play for the first month of the season. With the time in splits spent well, I’m expecting this team to be scarier than before.
