The world of daily fantasy can be overwhelming and a challenge to get involved in. Maybe you’re a huge fan of a sport, your state is now allowing sports gambling or you play for fun, and now you are trying to get a better understanding of strategy to come out on top. How does the scoring work? Why when I go to click on a sport are there different types of lobbies? Would I pick the same players in all of the different types of lobbies? These challenges and questions can plague you in sports you are comfortable with but can be even more daunting with competitions you are not as familiar with. I am going to take with the rapid rise of esports, this is where most players will fall for League of Legends DFS players, but no worries! This article will give a brief overview of the two competition styles, things to keep in mind with picks, and how to best maximize your winnings. Remember, above anything else you should trust your gut. With this article, different analysis articles, or breakdown podcasts you should always trust your gut and make YOUR picks!
There are two different types of lobbies in DraftKings for League of Legends. Different leagues or Sportsbooks may have different approaches to LOL but this will give you a pretty simple breakdown of different styles of play.
LOL Classic
LOL Classic is exactly what it sounds like, the staple and base version of LOL DFS. This lobby is most like what you would see across different sports. Choose from a range of players across however many matches are being played that day. Each player is given a dollar amount and you have to stay below the given salary cap while building your roster. The standard LOL Classic lobby will have a salary cap of $50,000 and will restrict you from picking up more than four players from any one team. For LOL, this isn’t too much of a hurdle because slates are usually filled with play-making players and picking heavily from top teams will get you in salary issues pretty quickly. The different roles you are filling for Classic are as follows
*Captain
This player earns x1.5 points (both positively and negatively so choose carefully!)
*Top
*Jungler
*Mid
*ADC
*Support
*TEAM
This roster spot is grading the ENTIRE team performance and looks at things like neutral objectives and towers taken.
To understand how to make your picks, you need to understand a few facts about League of Legends itself. Having a deep understanding of the game AND DFS will make a big impact on your lobby outcomes. So to make this easier, let’s break down each role and what YOU should look for. If you are part of the Fantasy Alarm esports family, this breakdown combined with our writers analysis should help you make your best picks!
Captain: This should be a player you are 110% confident in making an impact in their matchup. This could be a player on a great team, a mismatch in talent, or a rising star. A kay to picking your captain is looking at the price tag. In League of Legends the superstars will have HUGE price tags regardless of the quality of their week in and week out play. Be smart because players cost more in the Captain role as compared to their positional role.
Cann’s Tips: First look for matchups. On DraftKings they will note it by showing the OPRK or opponent rank. If your player is playing a weaker team, it will denote it in green and show how low ranked they are. If your selected player is in a tough matchup, the OPRK will be red and show their ranking. It is easy to pick a flashy player and maybe miss that they are into a tough matchup. This doesn’t mean that they won’t score you good points, but it definitely will come with more risks.
Top: Top lane shifts probably more than any other position based on the meta. When I talk about “the meta” I am referring to what is the strongest accepted strategy in LOL. The easiest way to understand this is how basketball has changed from a mid-range and low post game to now driven by the ability of players to shoot the three ball. Players who play this role can one portion of the season play tankier champions whose job it is to engage team fights and disrupt so their teammates can deal massive amounts of damage safely. Then in other portions of the season play more “carry” (high damage dealing and play making champions) in later portions of the season.
Cann’s Tips: How does this impact your picks? Learn the play styles of teams and players and note how well they are fitting into the current meta. If they are fitting in well, regardless of the meta, cheaper players can be smart pickups because the game fits their playstyles. Also top can be a place to save $$ by picking up cheaper players when it is more of a “tank-top” meta. The position will not be highlighted with kills or gold and will get the bulk of their points from assists anyway so you won’t need to pick up a pricier pick and spend that cash elsewhere. On the other hand, if the meta pushes top laners towards play-making champions, invest heavily on those flashier players because teams will invest heavily on winning that matchup.
Jungle: A team’s jungler can be a lynchpin in making a team successful. Looking at the top teams across the world, they have a consistent producer in their jungler. They key in picking the right jungler is seeing how they are used. While much like top lane, meta can really shift which champions are best, junglers have specific play styles and will play to those styles regardless of which champions are best. Players like Karsa are aggressive and look for opportunities to gank lanes, cut down enemy carries, and make solo plays around objectives. In comparison you can have a jungler like Xsmithe who is a field general. He directs his team around the map and makes personal sacrifices to prop up his teammates. Finding out which junglers will perform best week in and week out is the key in locking down solid points at this role.
Cann’s Tips: Look at the 1v1 matchup for that game. There is no role in League of Legends that can have such a direct impact on how the game plays out. A jungle difference is huge in League of Legends because the better jungler (or the one who has the head to head matchup) dictates the pace of the game, determines macro play, and can set up game winning fights. If you can, read the FantasyAlarm slate breakdowns to get more information on individual matchups but if not look at their play styles. Aggressive junglers who look into invading into the enemy jungle love playing into slower, more team fighting junglers. Team fighting junglers prefer playing into volatile junglers who prioritize early ganks. And those early ganking junglers love when the enemy junglers prioritize fighting in the jungle over putting pressure on lanes. Look at the matchup and find the biggest gap in skill and playstyle week to week.
Middle: Mid lane can be a funny place to pick up points. You will be tempted by huge price tags and flashy names. Mid lane equates to the quarterback in the NFL or a star pitcher in the MLB. They hold control over the most pivotal lane and many times can dictate how late game team fights play out based on the advantages they gained in the early game. Knowing the mid laners in each league is key in being able to make solid picks week in and week out. Finding strong mid laners at good prices are key in finding success in LOL DFS. Individual skill is really important but how that individual skill transitions into how their team plays in the late game is more important.
Cann’s Tips: The price-tag is really important here. Mid laners can be overvalued based on name recognition. Someone like Perkz will have a high price tag even in down performances because of the quality over his entire body of work. While that means he normally is a safe bet, but you need to know what is the trajectory of play over the last few weeks. My suggestion? Find ways to cut corners here. You can pay the high price tag on people like Faker, Jensen, and Knight but finding cheaper alternatives can help with the overall salary cap. BE CAREFUL OF OVERPAYING FOR TALENT. Everyone has bad days, so putting too much into one player can sink your lineup.
ADC: Attack Damage Carry. Originally when the game was released the ranged Attack Damage Carries (as compared to champions who do Magic Damage) were in the mid lane alone. Soon they transitioned to the bottom lane and fought alongside a support and now we see this as a staple of competitive League of Legends. Throughout the history of LOL we have seen this role change in importance and impact on the match. As the most susceptible to dying quickly, the success of the ADC hinges on the ability of the player to have mechanical skill and the ability of their team to keep them alive. The success from a given player is as much in their team success as it is their own.
Cann’s Tips: Look at the overall team tendencies. Does the team pour resources into that lane? Do they see the ADC position as a means to an end? Do they see their ADC as the focus of their win condition? While some ADCs who get little resources can pull serious points (Ghost- Damwon Gaming) most successful ADCs come from teams who invest in them. Players like Rekkles (G2 Gaming) and JackeyLove (TES) are focuses for their team and worth a higher price tag.
Support: The support seems like an easy place to skimp on salary space but that is an easy way to lose. Good supports not only get their ADC out of laning phase well but control late game team fights and set up great engagements to end the match. A lot of mediocre supports look at their job to mean dying a lot for their team and forcing plays. Picking up a player like this can lead to you finding yourself outside placement in lobbies. Look at the entire body of work in a supports career and get to know different play styles to find more secure choices week in and week out.
Cann’s Tips: Supports will show you who they are over a larger body of work. It is easy to fall in love with a score from a week of play but then get tricked into thinking that score is who they normally are. Overly aggressive Supports will have great days and post great scores on one day but then absolutely have dud performances the next. Also judge a support by the ADC they are paired with. Some teams will bring in strong supports to pair with young or new ADCs and it does not work out. Last year TL paired CoreJJ (one of the greatest Supports of all time) with rookie ADC Tactical and it worked out beautifully but this is not always how this works out. To trust a Support you really should have faith in how that Support will work in their lane with the ADC they are tasked with protecting.
*One thing to note with playing LOL DFS is that different leagues have different formats in matches each week. With the LPL and LCK they play best of three for each matchup. This means that players who can win in fewer games will earn extra points so look to pick up players and teams that should have a skill gap over their opponent to pick up those extra points!*
LOL Showdown
LOL Showdown comes into play more frequently on a Championship slate but can be found on a weekly basis. Showdown focuses on four slots for you two to fill and most of the time the focus is on one matchup between two teams. The same scoring applies between Classic and Showdown but the pool of players and the depth of the roster you are picking up is different. You will pick two Captains (x1.5 point multiplier) and two Flex (normal point values earned) and you must pick one player for Captain and Flex from each team playing. So a roster will look like this:
Captain 1: Team A
Captain 2: Team B
Flex 1: Team A
Flex 2: Team B
All players and teams who are participating in the competition will be eligible to be picked up but you will also need to make sure you are staying under the $50,000 salary cap. This is a test to see how well you know the individual matchup and who you think will have the biggest impact on the match. Follow the tips below to construct the best lineup possible!
Cann’s Tips:
First and foremost, join the FantasyAlarm Esports family! Our writers will give in-depth look at different player and team matchups! Don’t miss out on our analysis!
Trust that big players will show up. Especially in championship matches it is always best to look at the body of work a player has put in over the last few matches and WHO they put those numbers up against. A good player may have lower numbers than their opponent but is the reason for that because they are struggling? Or is it because they have been playing tougher opponents? Do your research!
Finally, look for connections between your team picks. A lot of times you can pick up a lot of points by picking up pairs who play well together and will take over the game together. Maybe look at a Jungle/Mid combo who roam together or maybe you see that a team plays through their top laner and ADC. Look past price tags and see where a team’s strengths and weaknesses are.
Finally, look at the head to head matchup. This is huge in the Top Lane, Jungler, and Mid Lane roles. How a player has historically performed against either their opponent or into their opponents play style should be a PIVOTAL strategy in how you make your picks. You can pick a solid underdog if you know they may have an edge over the DK favorite, but the price tag may not show that. Again, read the FA slate breakdowns for more information!
I know this is a lot! Join the FA Esports chat to stay in the know and ask any questions you may have about lineups! The team cannot wait for all the wins in this season and we want you to join in! Feel free to ask questions of anyone on the team and look out for our analysis as well on Twitter! Here are the LOL team’s Twitter handles!
Ed Cann (LPL): @EdCann1
Christopher Troeh (LCS and LEC): @PrussianLoL
Nova (LCK): @NovaBottt