RADIO
Welcome back RotoBallers to my League of Legends DFS column! 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. I can't thank you enough for the kind words on Twitter, and your support has afforded me the opportunity to write about something I love every day.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but as many of you already know, the Mid Season Invitational tournament has been canceled. This, along with the World's Championship in the fall, was one of Riot's premier competitions. What that means to us besides no MSI contests is the leagues are reverting to their normal start times for summer split. After the EU Masters wraps up, there will be no LOL DFS for us to sweat until Mid-June. Luckily the group stage will be back next Wednesday - Saturday with knockouts being played after that. So it is now a bittersweet time for eSports DFS enthusiasts like myself. Spring season is coming to a close, but there are still some massive contests posted in the FanDuel and DraftKings lobbies, including the 15-dollar Shock Blast that pays 25k to first place!
Today, I'll be providing my League of Legends advice, analysis, and lineup picks for the EU Masters slates on DraftKings and FanDuel that lock at 12:00 PM ET on Saturday, April 25th, 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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12:00 PM: YDN vs. BTXL (-360)
Italy's YDN showed out much better yesterday versus GO than they did in their opener with GL in which they seemed completely lost. Things do not get easier for the Italian stallions here on Saturday AM.
The team I consider to be the UK's top representative will be looking to get a win on the board after dropping their first two in the group. XL should win this comfortably and are big favorites, according to Vegas. I expect them to follow through, but the real question of the EU Masters thus far has been finding the right games to target.
This match grades out as one of my top targets for Saturday as I imagine any that includes YDN will for the remainder of the tournament.
Deadly - ADC ($8,000 DraftKings, $10,000 FanDuel)
kaSing - SUP ($6,000 DraftKings, $8,000 FanDuel)
The ADC lives up to his billing for the side of XL, he leads the team with 32.5% kill share and is second to his support in KP%. Speaking of his support kaSing is one of three former LEC competitors on this roster. The talent is there for XL, and they are a bounce-back team for me heading into the second week.
12:45 PM: GamerLegion vs. GamersOrigen (-155)
The French champs clash with the German three seed for supremacy atop group A on Saturday morning. This will be another close match to call, and it features some high-end talent. Some former, and possibly some future LEC talent will be on display.
On the main stage, GL has looked like an ea game team, but during the play-in stage and in their domestic league, they were much slower starters. I doubt that the careful and calculated French team allows the early game to get out of control, or gifts over a huge lead to the Germans here. For that reason, I'll side with GamersOrigin.
Again as we have seen, finding the right game has been more important than finding the winner, and I think that this is not the right spot. Two closely matched good teams have proven to be fantasy poison thus far in the tournament.
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1:30 PM: Singularity vs. Movistar Riders (-600)
The Nordic champions are well on their way to a winless first week. The Spanish two seed is going to need to pick up this win to stay in contention heading into week two.
MSR has had some slow starts to their games at EU Masters so far, but I doubt that continues vs. SNG. In only two games thus far, SNG has averaged -6000 gold at 15 minutes. That's record-setting bad, and just what the doctor ordered for the likes of MSR.
This will be one of my top three spots to target on the slate if SNG can keep this a little bit competitive MSR will be a top target as we all remember the numbers K1CK put up vs. the Nordic champs.
Elyoya - JNG ($7,800 DraftKings, $9,000 FanDuel)
DraftKings and FanDuel seem to agree with my assessment of SNG, and they have priced MSR accordingly. ELY is second on his team in KP% and third in kill share. Junglers especially have had a good time vs. SNG, and have been able to carry before their ADC's even come online. That's the kind of performance I'm expecting here, and I'll be looking to center my stacks around the jungler or use him as a premium one-off.
Xico - MID ($8,200 DraftKings, 9,500 FanDuel)
What can I say? Mid-jungle duos are where it's at and Xico is his team KP% leader and their KS% leader. He is a Cassiopea main, and if SNG does not ban this champion, we could see a performance similar to that of Lukezy. The WIZ mid-laner piloted Cassio to a 10-4-7 performance good for 50.68 DK.
2:15 PM: K1CK vs. Schalke 04 (-335)
Aside from Rogue collapsing yesterday, the Polish squads have acquitted themselves very well thus far. S04 had a bit of a let-down game one against the MSR, and so we know they can be beaten even with their level of talent.
K1 has played very well early, and if they are to win this match, they will have to again. If they are unable to snowball that early lead S04 superior talent level will come to bear, and they will end up winning late. I will side with the polish upstarts here.
They were quick starters in their home league, and I think if they get up early it can get in S04 head a little be especially Gillius. This is another top spot for me and I think its a great spot to hedge in GPPs.
Shlatan - K1 - JNG ($6,200 DraftKings, $7,900 FanDuel)
The jungler for K1 leads his team in KP%, and if he can pilot them to an early lead, he can make trouble for Gillius. "God" Gillius is known as a very cocky player believing he can outplay any scenario, and seeing his Lee Sin on Friday, you might believe it. Shlatan plays a mean Jarvan and Gragas, and with either of those picks, he can maintain utility throughout the match. If he gets ahead due to Gillius's overconfidence, you could see an MVP performance from the youngster.
Neon - S04 - ADC ($7,800 DraftKings, $9,900 FanDuel)
If the Poles aren't able to snowball Neon will have time to scale on either Aphelios, Senna, or Varus and become a true late game carry threat. He leads this S04 squad in KS%, and if his side comes out on top, he will be a major portion of that victory.
3:00 PM: Giants (-215) vs. Rogue
The Spanish champs are looking to put their stamp on this group by sending Rogue packing on Saturday. From the way Rogue threw (the game and my money out the window), I think they have a good shot at doing so on Saturday.
Rogue went for a scaling comp vs. and had the game within their grasp on Friday, but tripped over the final hurdle. I think we can get some value here on the side of the Giants, and I expect them to win. This isn't the best fantasy spot, but LDLC put up decent numbers vs. RGO, and I think Giants could do the same.
Attila - ADC ($8,400 DraftKings, $9,700 FanDuel)
The former LEC player leads his team in both Kp% and kill share, and that's a very nice combo for an ADC. He styled at the end of the game Wednesday, getting himself a Penta-kill to fill up the stat sheet. Hopefully, it doesn't take last-minute heroics to save his scoreline on Saturday, but with the unforced errors coming out from the side of RGO I think he can pay this off.
3:45 PM: Defuse Kids vs. LDLC (-265)
DK is one of the slowest teams in the tournament, if they can pull the upset here, they would be a good play. The favorites however are likely to be a fade for me in tournaments due to DK's slow style. DK average under 17 deaths in their losses and so far have crippled fantasy upside.
I'm probably still salty, but I can see this as a dog or pass spot. DK has started out their games fairly well, and if they can get into an advantageous position may be able to pull this one out. They do have better vision numbers than LDLC, and that could put them in a position to squeak one out late.
Goose - ADC ($6,400 DraftKings, 9,200 FanDuel)
We know I don't like the bottom half of LDLC's map, and that's a spot I'm sticking to. Goose was signed in the offseason to try to get DK over the hump in their Dutch league and in international play. So far, so good as he leads the team in both KP% and kill share. If they are to pull this one out for me I like sticking with the ADC here
Summary
- YDN gives up kills in buckets XL is in a great spot.
- Another matchup of strong teams that's maybe too close to call, and I like the French squad GO. I'll likely avoid them though due to lack of upside.
- MSR should have a good day vs. SNG, who can also give up points in bunches.
- K1 and S04 the math matchup, and I like hedging this one in GPPs as I think its another top spot due to K1's aggression.
- I like Giants over Rogue on Saturday but might only cherry-pick a few of my favorites here looking for some value. Not a great upside spot due to RGO boring playstyle.
- I might still be emotional about RGO throwing vs. LDLC, but the numbers agree this is a dog or pass spot.
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Looking Forward
The League of Legends DFS action never stops, and we here at Rotoballer have got you covered. EU masters are in full swing, and we will have two weeks of the group stage to keep us busy while waiting for LPL/LCK playoffs to finish up. Then it will be on to MSI, and it will be summer split before you know it.
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!
RotoBaller Testimonials
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!
Did you read a RotoBaller article and win too? Send us your screenshots on Twitter @RotoBaller and we'll add it to our winners Hall Of Fame!
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— "Thunder Dan" Palyo (@ThunderDanDFS) April 16, 2020
