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The League Championship Series’ Spring Split regular season has come to an end, so let’s take a look at the fantasy performance of top lane players.
In this season, top lane players averaged just under 20 Skrilla Points Per Game (SKPPG), which is lower than every other role except for support. This means that high scoring top laners were a rarity and a valuable asset in daily fantasy throughout the season.
North America, Average: 20.49 SKPPG
1) Heo “Huni” Seung Hoon, Echo Fox, 3.1 KDA, 26.91 SKPPG
2) Kevin “Hauntzer” Yarnell, Team SoloMid, 3.3 KDA, 23.06 SKPPG
Huni and Hauntzer were the true carry top laners in the league and were fantasy stalwarts throughout the season. Huni’s aggressive playstyle was backed up well by Echo Fox, while TSM relied on Hauntzer to take advantage of favorable matchups.
3) Kim “Ssumday” Chan Ho, 100 Thieves, 3.9 KDA, 22.14 SKPPG
Korean superstar Ssumday provided fantasy value in a different way than Huni and Hauntzer. While they focused on damage, Ssumday played a more steady tank role for 100 Thieves and achieved huge numbers of assists.
4) Eric “Licorice” Ritchie, Cloud9, 2.9 KDA, 21.94 SKPPG
Cloud9’s rookie top laner, Licorice, had an impressive first LCS season. He led the league in kills from the top lane and showed great potential, although his lack of assists limited his fantasy standings.
5) Darshan Upadhyaya, Counter Logic Gaming, 3.0 KDA, 21.63 SKPPG
6) Lee “Flame” Ho Jong, Flyquest, 3.7 KDA, 20.82 SKPPG
Flame was the original top lane carry and had a strong season, but his success didn’t translate to FlyQuest’s overall performance. He was a boom or bust pick for much of the season.
7) Jung “Impact” Eon Yeong, Team Liquid, 3.6 KDA, 20.2 SKPPG
8) Samson “Lourlo” Jackson, Golden Guardians, 3.6 KDA, 18.83 SKPPG
9) Colin “Solo” Earnest, Clutch Gaming, 2.8 KDA, 16.16 SKPPG
10) Niship “Dhokla” Doshi, Optic Gaming, 1.5 KDA, 13.26 SKPPG
11) Derek “Zig” Shao, Optic Gaming, 1.3 KDA, 11.49 SKPPG
Five players had below average numbers, with Impact being the most solid performer as a member of Team Liquid. However, Impact’s performance was heavily influenced by his team’s success. Dhokla and Zig had particularly low numbers, indicating their struggles in the top lane.
Europe, Average: 19.85 SKPPG
1) Martin “Wunder” Hansen, G2 Esports, 5.9 KDA, 27.6 SKPPG
Wunder was the best top laner in the LCS this season. He consistently performed well and achieved huge numbers in every category. Wunder is a fantastic fantasy pick and we can expect great things from him in the summer split.
2) Barney “Alphari” Morris, Misfits, 4.1 KDA, 21.91 SKPPG
3) Lucas “Cabochard” Simon-Meslet, Vitality, 3.3 KDA, 21.12 SKPPG
4) Paul “sOAZ” Boyer, Fnatic, 2.5 KDA, 20.83 SKPPG
5) Kim “Ruin” Hyeong Min, Giants Gaming, 2.6 KDA, 20.13 SKPPG
These four top laners had above average numbers, but were not dominant fantasy picks. They had their uses in picking favorable matchups, but didn’t stand out as much as Wunder.
It’s worth noting that these top laners played on teams with varying levels of success. Fnatic’s sOAZ benefited from his team’s high win rate, while Ruin performed well despite Giants Gaming’s struggles. If Giants Gaming improves their supporting cast, Ruin could have even bigger potential in the future.
6) Andrei “Odoamne” Pascu, Splyce, 2.3 KDA, 19.02 SKPPG
Odoamne had a statistically underwhelming season, leading the league in top lane deaths despite playing for the team with the least deaths in Europe. This affected his fantasy value, even though he performed well in other categories.
7) Kim “Profit” Jun Hyung, ROCCAT, 3.1 KDA, 18.54 SKPPG
8) Lennart “Smittyj” Warkus, H2k Gaming, 1.8 KDA, 16.52 SKPPG
9) Matti “WhiteKnight” Sormunen, Unicorns of Love, 2.2 KDA, 16.44 SKPPG
10) Tamás “Vizicsacsi” Kiss, FC Schalke 04, 2.2 KDA, 16.41 SKPPG
Smittyj had a high kill participation among top laners, but his team didn’t get many kills overall. Vizicsacsi, who led the league in kills from the top lane last summer, had a less successful split in terms of fantasy scoring.
Top lane was not a high-scoring position this split, with fewer points and a smaller range of performance compared to other roles. Only a select few players, like Wunder, Huni, and Hauntzer, stood out as top fantasy picks, making it challenging for daily fantasy choices in the top lane.
In the next split, we can expect similar performances from the top players. However, it will be interesting to see if there are any changes in the supporting cast of teams like Cloud9, TSM, and FlyQuest, who had disappointments in the playoffs. These changes could have an impact on the fantasy scoring of top laners like Hauntzer, Licorice, and Flame, respectively.
Skrilla, esports daily fantasy, League Championship Series, top lane, fantasy performance, Skrilla Points Per Game, North America, Heo “Huni” Seung Hoon, Kevin “Hauntzer” Yarnell, Kim “Ssumday” Chan Ho, Eric “Licorice” Ritchie, Darshan Upadhyaya, Lee “Flame” Ho Jong, Jung “Impact” Eon Yeong, Samson “Lourlo” Jackson, Colin “Solo” Earnest, Niship “Dhokla” Doshi, Derek “Zig” Shao, Martin “Wunder” Hansen, Barney “Alphari” Morris, Lucas “Cabochard” Simon-Meslet, Paul “sOAZ” Boyer, Kim “Ruin” Hyeong Min, Andrei “Odoamne” Pascu, Kim “Profit” Jun Hyung, Lennart “Smittyj” Warkus, Matti “WhiteKnight” Sormunen, Tamás “Vizicsacsi” Kiss, G2 Esports, Misfits, Vitality, Fnatic, Giants Gaming, Splyce, ROCCAT, H2k Gaming, Unicorns of Love, FC Schalke 04.