RADIO
Jason Malmanger's expert League of Legends (LoL) DFS advice and DraftKings, FanDuel lineup picks for LPL and LCK slates on 4/15/20. His top LoL value plays and eSports DFS recommendations.
Welcome back to my League of Legends DFS column here at RotoBaller! We will continue to extend our analysis for LoL DFS across different leagues and sites, bringing you the insight you need to succeed. Thanks once again for the outpouring of support from the DFS and ESports communities!
With three more games on the docket tonight in the LPL, and the LCS and LEC playoffs in full swing, it's an excellent time for ESports DFS enthusiasts like myself. The number of contests on FanDuel and DraftKings continues to grow. There are three LPL matches, and three more in the LCK that grace the slate tonight. These next two slates are the last full LPL/LCK slates in the Spring regular season and there are already some massive contests posted in the FanDuel and DraftKings lobbies!
Today, I'll be providing my League of Legends advice, analysis, and picks, for this LPL slate on DraftKings and FanDuel that locks at 2:00 AM on Tuesday, April 15th, 2020. Make sure you are following me on Twitter @Mr_Malmanger as I often post starting lineups when I see them and other useful info for the slate.
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LCK Matches
2:00 AM: Gen G (-240) vs. KT Rolster
Gen G has had some off games of late dropping matches to T1, DRX, and HLE, but they retain the top spot in the league. KT has continued its recent hot streak with wins over T1 and SBG. Statistically speaking, these two teams are very close, but GEN does hold advantages in drakes, barons, CSM, and vision control.
KT keep edges in herald %, and first turret %, but not first blood%. Kt holds on to fourth in the league, but they are only 23-20 in gamescore, I think they have been playing above their heads a bit. I look for GEN G to get back on track here in their final game before playoffs.
The first place position in Korea is far too important for anyone to give it up via a lazy match here or there. Gen will be on pointe here and dismiss KT likely 2-1.
Clid - JNG ($6,400)
Clid is second on the team in KP%, with 72.5% only second to BDD. He and his mid-laner are the leaders on the team in first blood %. They work well together on both the rift and your fantasy lineups. If GEN wants to keep hold of the number one spot, they will have to draft a winning matchup for Bdd and allow Clid to help out their star mid-lane early and often. The top and bot lanes will likely fend for themselves early while Bdd and Clid can establish a lead for the mid-laner.
BDD - MID ($7,400)
MID-JNG duos are the second most talked about pairing in LOL Dfs, and GEN G has as good a pair as any team in the league. Bdd leads the team in KP% and is second in kill share % to Ruler. As the fifth most expensive MID on Draftkings, I think we're getting good value here on the side of Gen G.
4:00 AM: Afreeca vs. T1 (-550)
AFS are on a slide that now sees them on the outside looking in for the playoffs. Things are not looking up for them on Wednesday morning, either having to face off with the third-place T1 squad that will want to keep pace with DRX.
T1 will need to sweep this match and hope that DRX drops a game to APK on Thursday to force a tie. T1 holds the tiebreaker over DRX having gone 2-0 with them this split, but do need them to drop a game to APK to bring that to bear.
For their part, T1 needs to secure the sweep first and foremost. With statistical advantages in most major categories as well as a more talented roster in four of five positions, T1 is in a good spot to do just that. Kiin is the only win condition for the side of AFS here, and I think T1 is smart enough to recognize that.
Faker - MID ($7,000)
Hard to believe I've been writing about LOL DFS for two weeks, and this is the first time I've recommended the Michael Jordan of ESports. T1 mid-laner Faker is the most known name in the league. A three-time world champion, the Unkillable Demon King has an excellent matchup with whoever starts in the mid lane for AFS. All iN has been better than Fly, but both have big disadvantages in CSM, gold, damage, and vision vs. Faker. The current meta tends to focus action on the bot lane, but Faker will be able to roam the map freely after pushing in his waves and influence the rest of the map.
Teddy - ADC ($7,800)
ADC focused meta you say, makes the best ADC in the league an easy choice. With AFS likely expending precious resources towards the strength of their team top-laner, Kiin, Teddy should be able to make his presence known on the bot side. Mystic is a stud, but there's a reason Teddy is the best in the league. Teddy's advantage in CSM, gold, damage, kill participation percentage, and a ridiculous 36% kill share makes him a good upside pick in this important game for T1's playoff seeding.
6:00 AM: Damwon (-335) vs. Sandbox Gaming
Sandbox managed to take down DWG in their first meeting this spring, but since then, DWG has added a new ADC and clawed their way into the playoffs. DWG will know their playoff fate by the time this match starts if AFS loses to T1 as I expect DWG will lock up the fifth spot in the playoffs no matter the outcome of this match.
For that reason, they have no real reason to play this straight up. DWG could also go full G2 esports here, and this match could turn into a full-on fiesta. Do DWG want revenge for week three and go all out to get it; do they not want to show their hands before playoffs and go softly into the night; do they substitute, or heaven forbid AFS beat T1, and they need to win to get in.
With their prices low across the board, especially on FanDuel, both sides of this match make for exciting GPP plays, but with the discount, I'll lean slightly to the side of SBG. I think both sides are viable and will likely have both in GPP lines on Wednesday.
Route - ADC ($6,600)
DWG's Ghost has come back down to earth after a blistering start to his return to the LCK. Route has been steady all split for SBG, and will have the advantage in this match. He leads Ghost in CSM, gold, KP%, kill share, and he has shown up on late-game carries like Kaisa and Varus.
Summit - TOP ($5,200)
Nuguri gets way more press than does Summit, but Summit nearly matches DWG's top laner statistically. In their first meeting, he put up 85.5 DKP at a similar price point. Nuguri tends to be overly-aggressive and can get in his head a bit. If this game is meaningless to DWG as I expect Nuguri could just feed trying to show out taking unnecessary fights.
LPL Matches
3:00 AM: Edward Gaming (-300) vs. OMG
EDG was the first LPL team I ever loved, and I still carry that with me to this day. I only mention this because you have to go back to those early days to find the last time OMG beat EDG. Week six of 2017 spring split was the last time OMG beat EDG, and Icon didn't play.
This OMG squad is better than that one, but I expect this match to play out in the same fashion that everyone, since that distant day in the past, has. OMG has improved, but they have gone only from cellar dwellers to gatekeepers. They haven't beaten a team above them all split, and I don't expect them to start now.
EDG should cleanly 2-0 this series, unfortunately, due to the nature of OMG this split, I do not expect them to score well. With EDG being among the most expensive plays on the slate, I will likely be off them for Wednesday morning. If you do go here and pay up to be contrarian, look to the usual suspects Jiejie, Jinoo, and Hope.
5:00 AM: Dominus Esports vs. Royal Never Give Up (-410)
No team has given us more problems recently than RNG. Since their win over eStar, they had IG on the ropes but couldn't beat theshy's top Vayne. Then lost to LGD and RW before beating LNG. When you look at their recent losses, though, one thing does stand out.
Aggressive carry style junglers have given XLB problems, and since the arrival of their new coach, Ye, Dominus has certainly been more aggressive. RNG is a better team, with better players, better stats, but I still can't shake the feeling that they find a way to lose here.
Due to their struggles, RNG will likely be overlooked here, and themselves then become a nice GPP play as people will flock to underdogs looking to for IG, EDG, and T1 into their lineups. This match is a good hedge spot for me as both sides could be good GPP plays.
Xiaopeng - DMO - JNG ($6,000)
Xiaopeng, along with Natural - TOP ($5,600), is the key to this matchup on the DMO side. The DMO jungler is a legacy Nidalee player and has a nasty Kindred as well. Both of those picks are rising in priority in the LPL, and I wouldn't be surprised to see either come out here as DMO looks to press RNG. For his part, Natural will look to match LangX in the top lane and give Xiaopeng a solid base to start his invades.
Xiaohu -RNG - MID ($8,000)
I really would have been more decisive about a DMO upset here if they had started Xiaowei instead of Xiye. Xiaowei's supportive playstyle and champion pool would have allowed more resources to flow to Gala or Xiaopeng, and it is these supportive mobile champions that have grown in priority in the LPL recently. Xiaohu has shown his flexibility with 12 different champions played this split and is very familiar with roaming bot lane to help his team get ahead in other areas of the map having played with UZI forever.
7:00 AM Invictus Gaming (-400) vs. Team WE
Here we have a classic IG matchup - high pace with whoever wins likely stacked up in the top lineups. Team WE has pulled a few nice upsets this season and was playing really well before they ran into E-Star last time out. WE with beisheng did beat the world champion lineup last summer 2-1, and they are my favorite underdog on this slate due to their ability to compete with even the best competition.
Theshy is better than Morgan in the top lane, though morgan tho Morgan better than people realize. However, beisheng is better at jungler than leyan but the gap isn't all that big either. These teams are pretty evenly matched, however IG has two of the best players in the LPL with Rookie and Puff in mid-lane and bot-lane. I like them in their individual matchups against Teacherma and Jiumeng. Yes, they are expensive, but they carry as much upside as anyone on this slate, especially if WE can steal a game and force a third, bloody contest.
Stacking up WE makes a ton of sense in GPPs as they have the ability to beat anyone and they easily have the most point-per-dollar upside on the slate if they could pull off the upset.
Summary
In cash games, the LCK offers the most safety with T1 and GenG being pretty safe bets in their matches. The LPL is loaded with potential (as usual) for GPPs with the IG-WE match being the one that is oozing with fantasy potential. If you are making multiple lineups, there are a few games very worthy of hedging as we continue to see several upsets a night lately.
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Looking Forward
With LPL and LCK overnight slates continuing through mid-April, we here at RotoBaller have got you covered. The League of Legends DFS action never stops. The LEC and LCS playoffs are in full swing, and EU Masters will be back soon.
Be sure to check back throughout the week as we'll be publishing daily ESports DFS articles, analysis and lineup picks for League Of Legends, Counter Strike, Rocket League and eNASCAR. Thanks for reading, and good luck RotoBallers!
More ESports DFS Analysis
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Readers of RotoBaller's eSports DFS articles have been winning money on DraftKings and FanDuel regularly. Some of them are winning contests daily and bringing in some serious cheddar. Check one out below and lots more here!
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