Top 5 LPL Players to Watch
A new season is fast approaching for 2019. We take a look at which players will be would be favorites to conquer the LPL in the coming spring split.
It’s 2019, and that means professional League of Legends play is just around the corner. Hot off its World Championship win, the LPL has one of the earliest start dates amongst the major regions with play beginning Monday, January 14.
Unlike the major Western regions, the LPL’s offseason included Demacia Cup 2018 Winter, which began on December 20, 2018, and ended 3 days later. This tournament gave us a sneak peek at what to expect for the 2019 LPL season, and it did not disappoint. Here are the top five LPL players to keep an eye on.
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5. LokeN (Topsports Gaming)
Our first player comes from Topsports Gaming (TOP), a team that barely deserved mention during the 2018 season. In November, however, TOP made a dramatic roster change by signing four new players—one in every position save for the jungle. Lee “LokeN” Dong-wook technically shares time with the other ADC on TOP, QiuQiu, but has played every game since joining the team.
As the former ADC on JD Gaming (JDG), LokeN has already established himself as one of the top ADCs in China. JDG did well for itself in the LPL, but was unable to make it to the World Championships last year. LokeN now finds himself on a newly-invigorated TOP lineup, one that took down Invictus Gaming (IG) in a best-of-3 at Demacia Cup. Although TOP eventually fell in the Grand Finals to IG, the team looks poised to take the LPL by storm this season.
4. JackeyLove (Invictus Gaming)
The World Champion ADC doesn’t seem to have lost any bit of edge in the offseason. In a solo queue meta dominated by powerful junglers, Invictus Gaming (IG) has no problem leaving JackeyLove to do the carrying.
Although IG took a tough 0-2 loss to TOP in Winner’s Finals, the team came back in Grand Finals to defeat TOP 3-1. JackeyLove sat in Uzi’s shadow all throughout last season, but then Worlds 2018 happened; JackeyLove and IG now sit—relatively comfortably—at the top of the LPL. It’ll be interesting to see if IG are able to continue their dominant play thoroughout 2019. If Demacia Cup is any indicator, however, the road may be tougher than expected.
3. Smlz (Suning Gaming)
If you asked a random League fan to name five LPL ADCs, they could probably come up with three: Uzi, JackeyLove, and iBoy. And who could blame them? Just like TOP LokeN, Han “Smlz” Jin has been overshadowed by the other bigger LPL ADC names because of their international play.
Like Topsports, Suning Gaming (SN) underwent a roster shuffle in the offseason, signing LMS superstars Maple and SwordArT. With this lineup, SN was able to get 3rd place in Demacia Cup, only losing to IG in both the winner’s and loser’s brackets. With a strong pillar in mid lane and a seasoned veteran by his side, Smlz has his best chance yet at becoming an LPL champion.
2. Rookie (Invictus Gaming)
It feels almost unfair to place Song “Rookie” Eui-jin so high on a list of players to watch. To some, Rookie has been one of the greats for many seasons; to others, he’s been just shy of it.
After his World Championship performance, however, Rookie has solidified his place in League’s history books. With a deep champion pool, Rookie is able to play control mages, assassins, and everything in-between; along with JackeyLove, Rookie is a consistent threat no matter the champion. To be honest, though, part of the reason the IG mid laner is number two on this list is because of who sits at number one.
1. Knight (Topsports Gaming)
Zhuo “Knight” Ding was, without a doubt, the most standout player of Demacia Cup Winter 2018. In nine games, he played six champions and posted positive scorelines even in the three losses to IG in the Grand Finals, including a deathless LeBlanc performance.
During his time on SN in LPL Spring 2018, SN was a middle-of-the-pack team that showed little promise. Now that he’s on Topsports surrounded by fresh faces, it seems Knight has been unleashed. Instead of sitting on the edge of the board, he’s now in the middle of all the pieces, free to play his game. Topsports is definitely the team to watch in LPL this split, and Knight is leading the charge.
Next. 2019 LCK team power rankings - preseason. dark
Who do you think should be on this list? Is someone underrated and not mentioned? Let us know in the comments.