This article is part of our DraftKings League of Legends series.
Daily Player Recommendations
Top Lane
Balls (Cloud9 vs. Team Impulse, $7,400): Balls may have a lot to prove before he gets taken seriously as an elite level top laner, but few would doubt that he has the ability to punish Feng. Considering that TiP have demonstrated an inability to decisively close out games, there's little downside to Balls, as games like that tend to be ones that Cloud9 find ways to win from seemingly nowhere. In the more likely case, Cloud9 will simply thrash TiP, and since Feng has a reputation for getting free points when his team loses, it's safe to say that Balls will score big if his team wins.
Other suggestions: Seraph (Renegades vs. Team SoloMid, $5,100), Darshan (Counter Logic Gaming vs. Echo Fox, $7,000)
Top Lane Player to Avoid
Billyboss (Team Dignitas vs. Immortals, $4,900): Despite being hot off the heels of his best performance yet, there's little reason to recommend Billyboss today. While he may have seen success against Echo Fox, a team still finding it's stride, Immortals will be another matter altogether. Considering his obvious vulnerability, I would expect Billyboss to be the obvious target of Immortals' infamous Korean duo. Considering how that tends to work out, I recommend avoiding him entirely.
Jungle
Dardoch (NRG eSports vs. Team Liquid, $6,200): While Team Liquid is not normally a team I put money on, it's hard to ignore the thrashing they just gave CLG on Saturday, a team most had pinned as the second best in North America. Even more difficult to ignore was the man of the hour, Dardoch. NRG is a team who's struggled to keep themselves afloat, and should be easier pickings for Dardoch than CLG proved to be. At the worst, both teams are prone to using big fights to win the game, something that can only escalate Dardoch's value.
Other suggestions: Rush (Cloud9 vs. Team Impulse, $7,200), Reignover (Immortals vs. Dignitas, $7,500)
Jungle Player to Avoid
Kirei (Dignitas vs. Immortals, $4,500): Facing Reignover is nearly as disastrous proposition for junglers as facing Huni is for top laners. As such, I don't expect much from Kirei, especially considering the incredibly demoralizing and frankly unnecessary loss to Echo Fox he'll be coming right off of.
Middle Lane
Jensen (Cloud9 vs. Team Impulse, $8,300): While his performance on Saturday was uninspiring to say the least, the circumstances of his merely acceptable scoreline are unlikely to be replicated against TiP. Renegades have, strangely, shown to be one of the stronger early game teams in recent weeks, and Jensen invited disaster for himself with a vulnerable pick like Varus. TiP, on the other hand, are mostly noted for their passivity and inability to win games outside of huge late game teamfights. This plays more into Jensen's hand, as he's often favored champions who excel at just that this season.
Other suggestions: Pobelter (Immortals vs. Dignitas, $8,600), Fenix (NRG eSports vs. Team Liquid, $7,200), GBM (NRG eSports vs. Team Liquid, $6,800)
Mid Laner to Avoid
Pirean (Cloud9 vs. Team Impulse, $5,800): Bullying has never been Pirean's strong suit, so the possibility of him scoring lane kills on Jensen is remote at best, barring another vulnerable pick on Jensen's part. Without snowballing lanes the unfortunate reality is that TiP doesn't know how to win a game, and playing to win is what C9 is known for with Hai on the squad, regardless of circumstances.
ADC
Piglet (NRG eSports vs. Team Liquid, $6,300): The other big standout from Team Liquid's utter rout of CLG was Piglet. Long known as one of the most hot-and-cold players in the NALCS, it seems that Piglet and Matt are finally starting to find a groove, and his constantly improving KDA is sure to impress fantasy owners. Only WildTurtle consistently outperforms the former world champion, but Piglet commands a salary over $1000 less. At that price he's fast becoming a steal.
Other suggestions: WildTurtle (Immortals vs. Dignitas, $8,600), Stixxay (Counter Logic Gaming vs. Echo Fox, $7,800), Doublelift (Team SoloMid vs. Renegades, $8,300)
ADC Player to Avoid
Altec (NRG eSports vs. Team Liquid, $6,900): The only player with a worse average points per game than Altec is Freeze. Three separate players who cost less than him have a higher average score, and with NRG's underwhelming showing yesterday there's little reason to assume they'll wow us today. Even if they do, Altec is rarely a large part of their wins, making his large salary inexplicable. Avoid.
Support
Adrian (Immortals vs. Team Dignitas, $6,600): This game will be a bloodbath, no matter who comes out on top. With a peerless kill participation, Adrian is just the kind of player that fantasy owners should be looking to put in for a game like this.
Support Player to Avoid
KiWiKiD (Immortals vs. Team Dignitas, $3,800): Read the above recommendation, then reverse it. KiWiKiD has a notable reputation for being caught out of position, and that's a trait that one simply can't expect to go unexploited by Immortals. Expect a pretty weak scoreline here.
Team to Use
Counter Logic Gaming (Counter Logic Gaming vs. Team LIquid, $5,600): Clocking in as the cheapest of the "sure to win" teams, we have Cloud9. If they manage an early lead against TiP the game should end up as nearly a shutout. In any case, they're sure to pick up the objective that will make their team valuable
Team to Avoid
Team Dignitas (Immortals vs. Dignitas, $2,900): If you manage to not be able to win a game after controlling it as utterly as Dignitas did against Echo Fox, you can't expect to win a game against Immortals. Even if their loss earlier this week didn't utterly demoralize them, Immortals would be sure to thrash them. The fact that they're likely to be playing on tilt before the game even begins will simply make the beat down that much more savage.
