League of Legends LCS preview Summer 2019
By Josh Tyler
1. Liquid
New players: none
Liquid returns from the Mid Season Invitational with their head held high. They put on one of the best performances by a North American team in international play, and are certainly the presumptive favorites to win the LCS for a fourth-straight time. Despite not making roster changes (yes Jake “Xmithie” Puchero and Jung “Impact” Eon-yeong have both looked shaky at times during the regular split, playoffs, or MSI) it’s not a bad bet to assume their raw talent will continue to carry them.
Player to watch: Nicolaj “Jensen” Jensen
It’s surprising to say that Jensen could be a weak spot for a team, but Liquid is so talented that it might actually be the case. Jensen was certainly not bad in the spring nor at MSI but he is going to have to contend with two very strong the mid laners on his team’s strongest competition. If Jensen can continue his strong play (and not choke) Liquid will have smooth sailing to another North American title.
Trending: down
It pains me to say that Liquid is trending down but they can’t be trending up as the best team and frankly, I think Cloud9 would have beaten them in the finals last year. TSM almost beat them in the finals and finished the split with a winning record in the regular season and playoffs against TL (4-3).
If Liquid didn’t win the LCS last split, the conversation is suddenly about whether Liquid is for real or not, and they were one loss away from that happening. I think Impact and Xmithie are still questions. They can both be very solid for sure but I think both are outmatched by their counterparts on Cloud9 (and I think there’s a legitimate argument that Broken Blade will pass Impact in the summer if he hasn’t already).
Next. LCS match of the week preview - TL vs. TSM. dark
Who do you think will be the best team in the LCS this summer? Let us know your favorite team and who you’ll be rocking with the Team Pass in the comments!