7 Question Marks Heading Into The 2021 LCS Season
Can Anyone Keep Up With Team Liquid?
Will Perkz Take Over The LCS?
The number one question going into the 2021 season for C9 is with their mid laner Perkz. Cloud9 paid nearly unthinkable amounts of money to buy out his contract from G2 Esports and bring the superstar over from the LEC. There’s no question about Perkz being good, he’s one of the best players in the world, but after some time spent playing the ADC role, is he going to step back into the mid lane and immediately take over the LCS? If Perkz performs a bit below his peak in 2021, C9 will still be a force to be reckoned with on the Rift. However, if Perkz plays to his full potential and let’s his inner superstar shine through, he may just dominate the LCS in a fashion never seen before and propel Cloud9 to the top of the standings and championship.
Did FlyQuest Fly Too Close To The Sun?
That’s not to say FlyQuest is now a team of nobodies, they made some strong pickups over the off-season. A package deal with Cloud9 brought in Licorice for the top lane, Palafox for the mid lane, and Diamond in the support role. Adding an up and coming potential star in the Jungle with Josedeodo from Argentina and rounding out their 2021 roster with Johnsun in the ADC role, FlyQuest is still poised to make a run this upcoming season. Time will tell how far they can make it with the complete roster overhaul.
Golden Thieves or 100 Guardians?
But just because Golden Guardians decided to move on from their roster, doesn’t mean that roster decided to move on from each other, at least for the most part. 100 Thieves snatched up the bulk of that roster for the 2021 season and are fielding a roster of Ssumday, Closer, Damonte, FBI, and Huhi moving into the season. The odd man out here is Hauntzer, but picking up 4 out of 5 players of a strong team and upgrading the top lane with one of the best top laners in the LCS is a move that looks strong on paper.
Time will tell if Golden Guardians was correct to move on from this roster, or if 100 Thieves was correct in keeping them together (mostly) to see what more they can achieve.
Team Solo Coach?
TSM has rounded out their 2021 roster with Huni in the top lane, PowerOfEvil in the mid lane, Lost at ADC, and world finalist SwordArt at support. While Huni is a bit of a coin flip and POE can be a resource heavy mid who is a step down from Bjergsen, this is still a solid looking team, a team that we would put 3rd in our pre-season power rankings of the LCS. That being said, there are a lot of variables at play here. Does the team adapt to SwordArt’s shot calling? Can Huni become more consistent? Are POE and Lost able to fill the massive shoes left behind by Bjergsen and Doublelift adequately? Can Bjergsen coach as well as he could play mid lane?
TSM has more questions than they have answers right now. But, if things work out, and the roster the organization has put together plays up to their potential, TSM will be right in the mix come playoffs.
Can Broxah And CLG Find Redemption?
CLG likewise is one of the original powerhouse organizations of the North American League of Legends scene. Those days are long in the past however, and CLG has been chasing that former glory without success for years now. Can Broxah reach his former highs and bring back that hype to this once great organization? Will the rest of the roster consisting of Finn, Pobelter, WildTurtle, and Smoothie be enough to turn this perennial bottom feeder into a playoff contender once again? The LCS is better when CLG is doing well, time will tell if this is the year they right the ship.