CLG vs Golden Guardians

Finally, to close out the day, we have a rather "chill" kind of match-up between Counter Logic Gaming and the Golden Guardians. Unlike nearly any other game today, this one carries no significance whatsoever -- neither CLG nor GGS have a shot at reaching the playoffs. We mean this in quite a literal sense — they don't have enough wins on the board and they cannot magically create them out of thin air.

Still, both teams have a reason to put their best foot forward and compete to the best of their ability. Why wouldn't they, after all? Sure, the season's over, but they still want to close things out on as high a note as possible. They tried their hardest to leave a mark, and the fact that they failed should in no way diminish their valiant efforts. The LCS is pretty darn stacked this year, so it should come as no surprise that certain teams simply don't have the tools (i.e. players and coaching staffs) to compete.

Both CLG and GGS will now play two more games and then pack their bags and go on a short hiatus. They won't compete in the Mid-Season Showdown nor will they travel to Rejkyavik, Iceland to represent their region at the 2021 Mid-Season Invitational. For all intents and purposes, the first half of the season is over both of these teams, which means they'll go back to the drawing board, recuperate, and try to shore up as many weaknesses they can in time for the 2021 Summer Split. There's a ton of work ahead of them, but at least they have a lot of time on their hands — the only "benefit" of not reaching the playoffs.

But even though they're both near the very end of the standings, there's still a huge gap between them, and it pertains to long-term potential and overall skill ceiling. Simply put, Counter Logic Gaming are much, much better than their current record would indicate. As the split progressed, they slowly (but surely) grew into a bona fide threat. Heck, they hold recent wins over Cloud9, Team Liquid, and Dignitas -- a testament to their strength and veterancy. They're obviously capable of throwing down with the best teams the LCS has to offer, and it's a real shame they haven't been able to synergize sooner (those pesky visa issues certainly hindered their progress from the very start). Regardless, their overall record will transfer over to Summer, so they definitely have a reason to try their hardest, despite being out of the running for playoffs.

They're also better than GGS in every which way, shape, and form, and should, by all means, be able to get the win tonight and improve their record to six wins and eleven losses.