This article is part of our DraftKings League of Legends series.
DraftKings LoL LCS: Friday Cheat Sheet
Friday's games, on paper, all seem to have fairly obvious favorites: G2, H2K, UoL, Fnatic, and Vitality. With that said where could the upsets come from? Fnatic haven't been consistent all season and face a ROCCAT team coming off a big win Thursday, making for at least one possible upset. UoL seem to be reeling and they face a Splyce team who could be poised to take down another top team. Origen have the ability to beat G2, but can they put it all together and actually pull it off? Hard to say. If you strongly believe any of these teams can pull of an upset, then using their carries can present good value today.
A quick word on H2K. After swearing off using them in fantasy I took a shot yesterday and of course was let down. I am personally not going to use H2K the rest of this split as their play style is based on winning without fighting and it's not conducive for fantasy points. They're a top team in a great matchup today, but I'm staying away. Some of their members are better to use than others, but none of them are guaranteed to reach bonus point plateaus, like 10+ kills or assists.
Daily Player Recommendations:
Top Lane:
Cabochard (VIT vs. EL, $7,400): Cabochard has proved to be one of the biggest top laner carries this split, often playing champions who can split push and win 1-vs-1 duels. Lately he's shown he's just as effective on utility champions like Nautilus and no matter what role he plays, today he's a pretty good lock to pick up bonus points.
Other Suggestions: Kikis (G2 vs. OG, $6,800), fredy122 (ROC vs. FNC, $5,300)
Top Lane Player to Avoid:
Gamsu (FNC vs. ROC, $7,300): Gamsu has been relegated to playing mostly tanks for Fnatic and although he looks fine doing it, at times he makes some questionable decisions. I think he's a risky play based on his recent performances, especially at this salary.
Jungle:
Trick (G2 vs. OG, $6,600): As always I love using this guy when his price is depressed. To me, he's by far the best fantasy jungler (and maybe best overall) this split. This game could end up being close, but G2 has shown much better team fight prowess this split and that should carry them to victory against Origen.
Other Suggestions: Jankos (H2K vs. GIA, $7,300), Shook (VIT vs. EL, $7,200)
Jungle Player to Avoid:
Loulex (UoL vs. SPY, $6,900): Loulex played well enough Thursday, but he wasn't really aggressive, failing to help his lanes. That translated to a slow, plodding game for Unicorns of Love. While I predict UoL will win Friday, don't be shocked if Splyce pulls off the upset. At this price I don't see the upside, especially when Trick is cheaper.
Middle Lane:
Perkz (G2 vs. OG, $7,700): PowerOfEvil can, and has, been dominated at times this split and I could see that happening again today. Perkz is arrogant and cocky, and it shows in his play -- sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. That being said, I think G2 will end up dominating Origen in team fights today and Perkz will be a big reason why.
Other Suggestions: Fox (UoL vs. SPY, $8,000), Betsy (ROC vs. FNC, $5,900)
Mid Laner to Avoid:
Ryu (H2k vs. GIA, $8,400): Ryu is a good player in a great matchup. But will he return enough fantasy points to be worth his price tag? As I said in my opening remarks, some members of H2K are better to use than others and Ryu is one that I'd skip considering his salary. He's averaging 14.3 points per game on DraftKings and although he should out produce that mark today, will he get into the 40 point range to be worth using? I'm not sure he will.
ADC:
Hjarnan (VIT vs. EL, $8,300): Hjarnan has been playing better lately and finds himself in a really good matchup today against Elements. He and KaSing have looked like the duo that dominated at times in the 2015 Summer Split and that bodes well for Vitality's progress the rest of the season. He's expensive, but he should be able to score enough points to be worth using today.
Other Suggestions: Emperor (G2 vs. OG, $7,700), Tabzz (ROC vs. FNC, $6,000)
ADC Player to Avoid:
Rekkles (FNC vs. ROC, $8,200): Simply put, he's too expensive. He actually played pretty well yesterday, but Fnatic are prone to mistakes, as those errors have been costly, certainly as of late. If I'm paying up for an ADC I think there are more reliable options to use today than Rekkles. I don't really see the potential to get to 10+ kills even in a game Fnatic should win.
Support:
Hybrid (G2 vs. OG, $5,700): This is a good price for a guy who is pretty reliable at hitting the 10+ assists mark in most match ups. Origen can keep this game close, but it's G2's team fight dominance that should lead them to victory, which bodes well for Hybrid racking up assists today.
Other Suggestions: KaSing (VIT vs. EL, $6,300), Noxiak (ROC vs. FNC, $4,000)
Support Player to Avoid:
Klaj (FNC vs. ROC, $6,100): I'm not interested in Fnatic's bot lane today at their high price points. I'm just not positive they'll reach bonus points in kills or assists and that makes them tough for me to use. Klaj has been pretty solid for Fnatic since joining, but I'd rather use someone else as my support today.
Team:
ROC vs. FNC ($3,400): I'll be honest, I think ROCCAT are the best bargain team today with a chance to upset, but it's certainly not a forgone conclusion that they will win. Fnatic are inconsistent and although ROCCAT are a bottom-level team, they can step up with some good performances from time to time. I just hope they didn't use all their mojo yesterday against UoL.