In a week of surprises, the jungle role was much the same. Our new lord and NA savior has shown himself finally, and it turns out that he’s a jungler.
If you were under a rock this past weekend, then you have no idea who I am talking about. And once I tell you, you won’t believe me, but Akaadian is our only hope. Okay, well, not really. He had a great week, sure, but will he continue this run of form? Let’s find out.
1. Chaser (Dignitas – NA LCS)
One of the safest picks of the week has to be Chaser. After a very strong showing last week, he now has even more time to adjust to his new team and perform hopefully better than before. Matchup-wise, DIG plays Team SoloMid and Echo Fox, so at worst, they’ll lose maybe one game. This should be a strong week for DIG and as their main playmaker, Chaser is sure to score big points.
2. Contractz (Cloud9 – NA LCS)
I was skeptical coming into this season about whether or not Contractz would be a top-five jungler. In his first week, he has already shown that he could easily be one. Not every game was perfect from him this week, but he consistently showed that he is in fact a massive improvement in the C9 jungle position. This improvement is no doubt the reason that they sit on top of everyone’s power rankings, and will continue to do so. Facing Counter Logic Gaming and Immortals should prove to be somewhat easy for Cloud9 this week, so I only expect them to drop one match loss.
3. Svenskeren (TSM – NA LCS)
Despite TSM’s struggles, Sven was able to put together a very strong fantasy week (third in scoring). I expect to see him continue that run this week as TSM looks to have a very similar week ahead of them. DIG should take down TSM pretty easily, though they may get it to a game three. Then, against Liquid, it could go either way. Overall, it should be much like last week, and that is good if you are a Sven owner.
4. KaKAO (Misfits – EU LCS)
Another Misfits player, KaKAO just happens to be one of the greatest junglers to ever play. Sure, recent form has not been in his favor, but he is now playing in a league that really should enable him to style on his opponents. The matchup with ROCCAT should be a complete annihilation, as Misfits just simply is a stronger team. In the second series, though, they have to play the titans that are G2 Esports. If I were to predict an outcome there, it would probably be 2-0 in favor of G2, but it is reasonable to think Misfits could pull out a game.
5. Akaadian (Echo Fox – NA LCS)
I have to give Akaadian the benefit of the doubt here, and put him quite highly on the list, despite his team looking like one that will go 0-2 once again. FlyQuest and DIG looked much better then Echo Fox last week, and I do not expect that to change, but Akaadian looked very much like an anomaly. This pick has a fair bit of risk, but you have to give him the chance to continue his form. Pick him up if you can; he may just be one of the best junglers in this season.
6. Inori (P1 – NA LCS)
As a team, P1 look to be quite strong. Their two imports (Arrow and Ryu) seem to be working quite well, and the team skirmishes really well. This means points should be easily obtained for Inori. In terms of schedule, they have a really weak week ahead of them. They get to play Liquid and EnVyUs, two teams that were shaky to say the least. I think Inori is not a world-beater in terms of point potential, but you can be assured that he will have at least a decent week.
7. Djoko (Vitality – EU LCS)
Week two will possibly be a very big week ahead for Vitality as they play Splyce and Origen, two teams that lost their first matchups and did not look good in the games. In Vitality’s first series of the season, they showed that they could be a team that produces big fantasy weeks, so hopefully they continue that trend. Djoko is a very risky start, but has a pretty high ceiling.
8. Reignover (Team Liquid – NA LCS)
Reignover looked really sloppy in week one, quite possibly having his worst week of his LCS career. I want to be able to chalk it up as just a bad week, but I think he has some serious issues playing the meta junglers. Kha’Zix, Lee Sin and Rengar are not junglers that Reignover would normally prefer. He has always shown more proficiency on tankier junglers, so this is really concerning.
What also doesn’t help is the fact that Piglet had an abysmal week too, while Goldenglue struggled equally. Maybe they solve some of these issues this week, and start to trend upward, but I am not too sure. P1 should be a much stronger team this week then Liquid, so I do not expect too much in that series, though a game three is possible. Then they take on TSM, which should be a battle of who can capitalize on mistakes, as both teams will make many. Play Reignover at your own risk.
9. Dardoch (Immortals – NA LCS)
Talent-wise and playstyle-wise, Dardoch is a fantasy superstar. Unfortunately, he was unable to show much of this last week, as his team looked incredibly out of sync. I do not expect them to fix these issues in just one week, but they do play EnVyUs, which could mean big points. I do not expect anything out of Immortals against Cloud9, but a game three is not too farfetched. Then, in a matchup against EnVyUs, they could really go off. The EnVyUs series should look a lot like a solo queue game, in the fact that there will be a lot of fighting and tons of kills. This means points, and hopefully it is enough to keep Dardoch above water in terms of fantasy.
Playing Dardoch has a high risk, but it is Dardoch, so the potential reward is there. Gamble away friends.
FeelsOk-Ish Starts of the Week
Xmithie (CLG – NA LCS)
CLG was awful, and it gets worse as they take on both 2-0 teams (Cloud9 and FlyQuest). C9 should make it a quick 2-0, but against FlyQuest, they could steal the series. Personally, I do not like playing Xmithie this week. The potential reward is very low and risk is still quite high. Though it is CLG, they could’ve just had a bad week and now they will start closing games better.
Xerxe (Unicorns of Love – EU LCS)
Xerxe came in with some hype, and hopefully this is his week to show it. They take on H2K in a really tough matchup, then play a weak Origen lineup. I think the potential is here, it is just really unproven. Thankfully for him, he has pretty good teammates to rely on if he is not in great form, so the risk is pretty low if you do end up playing him. Between Xmithie and Xerxe, I would go Xerxe.
LirA (Team EnVyUs – NA LCS)
As of now, I have not heard anything about whether or not LirA will play for EnVyUs. If he does, I think he would be a top-five jungle play. An ideal strategy would be to have someone like Xerxe or Djoko on the bench while you wait and see if LirA can play. If LirA does play, start him. If not, play your other option.
Who’s starting in the jungle for you in week two? Let us know in the comments below or tweet us @GAMURScom.
Photo credits: Riot Flickr
