RADIO
Welcome to RotoBaller's coverage of League of Legends DFS for FanDuel and DraftKings. Hopefully, you've been following our coverage of the LPL/LCK overnight slates on FanDuel and DraftKings. Today, I will be switching gears a bit and will be focusing on the two-game LEC/LCS playoff slate that is available on both sites.
Both FanDuel and DraftKings have combined the Saturday matches from each league to make a slate. Both matches are from the Winners' brackets from each league so we have some of the best teams going on this slate. One important thing to note is that these matches are now "bo5" (best of five) series which changes things quite a bit from the usual single-game format of regular-season matches.
Today I'll be bringing you my League of Legends advice, analysis, and picks, for the LCS playoff slate on DraftKings that locks on Saturday, April 11th at 4:00 PM. Follow me on twitter @ThunderDanDFS and definitely make sure you're following my LoL mentor and our RotoBaller lead ESports analyst @Mr_Malmanger, too!
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League of Legends DFS Basics
Since LCS contests are being offered on both FanDuel and DraftKings, it's important to note some pricing discrepancies from site to site, but the roster slots, scoring, and roster construction rules are almost entirely identical with the only exception being that FanDuel forces you to roster at least one player (or team slot) from a third team, while you can play only two teams among your seven roster slots on DraftKings.
- . Stacking in LoL DFS lineups is very important. 4-3 stacks are the order of the day (on DraftKings) with 3-3-1 becoming more popular (and necessary on FanDuel) as people try to differentiate their lineups in these suddenly large-field GPPs.
- In LoL DFS, it is very important to focus on players from winning teams. Think in terms of baseball, one side of the matchup is like a pitcher and the other side the batter. This means there is a very negative correlation between teams in the same match. Players score by accumulating kills, which costs the other side points in deaths. Just like earned runs bring down your pitcher’s score.
- Along with this another mistake I see beginners making is trusting average scoring. Players' scoring potential is only realized in games that are won. If player X averages 50 DKP, that likely comes from scoring 70 in a 2-0 win and 30 in an 0-2 defeat. What this means is that someone who looks like a value at $4800 suddenly might not end up being such a great point-per-dollar play.
- Finally, you're going to want to do your best you fill your captain slot with an ADC or MID. Depending on which teams and players you decide to stack that might not be feasible. The order of preference for your captain slot is generally ADC, MID, JNG, TOP, SUP. Some players in some positions may stand out above the others so consider stats like kill share before you make your final decision.
NOTE: An important detail to note in regards to scoring is that both teams and players can get a double bonus for sweeping their opponent 3-0 in the best of five format. Each player receives 20 extra points in a 3-1 series victory, while teams get 15 additional points. That becomes 40 points per player in a sweep and 30 points per team. Both DraftKings and FanDuel both have the same scoring rules for this bonus.
LEC Winners' Bracket
Saturday, 11:00 AM: Fnatic (-500) vs MAD Lions
Fnatic dispatched of Origen 3-1 in round one, while MAD pulled a massive upset of the top-seeded G2 in an epic five-game series. Despite their big win in the first round, the MAD Lions find themselves as heavy underdogs here.
Fnatic is widely regarded as one of the two top teams in the league and the separation between themselves and G2 from the rest of the pack is substantial. MAD finished fourth in the league this season and was able to defeat Fnatic in one of their two head-to-heads in the regular season, but they will definitely have their work cut out for them here.
I'm rolling with Fnatic here in a series that has the potential to be very bloody. Both teams have high CKPM (combined kills per minute) which means we should see the winning team pile up a bunch of fantasy points. MAD has the talent to steal a game or even two, but the more games the better for Fnatic as a five-game series would likely raise their ceilings even more.
MAD took advantage of an overconfident G2 last week, but I expect Fnatic to be focused here and play to their strengths. They have the best early game rating in the league and excellent first tower rates. They like to play from in front and I expect them to dictate the terms to MAD in this series.
Rekkles is one of the best players in the league and should be the centerpiece of any FNC stack. He leads the team with a 69% kill participation rate and has only a 9% death rate. I'm not ruling out a match-stack here, but that's still a risky build with C9 on the slate.
Top Fnatic Stack:
- Rekkles - ADC (8000 DK, 10200 FD)
- SelfMade - JNG (7200 DK, 8700 FD)
- Bwipo - TOP (6600 DK, 8300 FD)
- Hylassing - SUP (6400 DK, 7600 FD)
Favorite Captain/Star - Bwipo (for value)
Top MAD Stack:
- Carzzy - ADC (7000 DK, 9600 FD)
- Kaiser - SUP (5200 DK, 7200 FD)
- Humanoid - MID (6800 DK, 8200 FD)
LCS Winners' Bracket
4:00 PM Saturday: Cloud 9 (-1800) vs Evil Geniuses
Cloud 9 enters this game as a heavy favorite, which should be of no surprise based on how they have dominated the LCS all season long. It's pretty wild seeing a Vegas line this drastic in a playoff series, but C9's dominance warrants it.
In round one, they dispatched 100 Thieves in three games, winning two of those games in under 30 minutes to get the bonus points for their team slot. The C9 Team slot scored 100 DK points in that game and is an elite play here today as I expect them to dominate this matchup, too. They swept the season series 2-0 and have only lost one game all year!
C9 is so good at controlling games and they rarely put themselves in bad spots. Their early game rating this season was 85 and the next closest team, which happens to be EG, is a distant second at 58. They've dominated every statistical category this season and there's little reason to think that EG can pull an upset here, let alone steal a game.
I like C9 for a clean three-game sweep and the worst-case scenario is probably still a 3-1 series victory. Yes, we saw G2 get upset last week at similar odds, but C9 is a much more disciplined team that is not going to let something like that happen.
If there's one team to fade on this slate, it's EG. Even the most contrarian person out there who wants to stack against the heaviest favorite just for leverage is just burning money here as C9 is just head and shoulders above the rest of this league.
Top C9 Stack:
- Blaber - JNG (7400 DK, 8900 FD)
- Nisqy - MID (7800 DK, 9300 FD)
- Vulcan - SUP (5800 DK, 8000 FD)
- TEAM (5800 DK, 7800 FD)
Favorite Captain/Star: Blaber
FADE Evil Genuises
Summary
- A Fnatic four-man stack on this slate is a priority to me, their series could be bloodier than C9.
- A Fnatic-C9 combo should be chalky, but is still likely the best way to go. You're going to have to go with JNG, TOP, or SUP at captain to make it fit.
- Fnatic has the most upside, but C9 is the safest team on the slate. The chances of them being upset by EG are much slimmer than MAD beating Fnatic.
- On FanDuel you have to play someone from a third team. That would be someone from MAD for me, not someone from EG.
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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!
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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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