Team Liquid vs Cloud9

This particular clash (a spectacle, even) couldn’t have been “scripted” any better. We have two of the very best teams in NA, both of which have an astounding amount of potential *and* talent. Their records serve as proof, too: they have a whopping ten wins and just two losses. That’s an incredible tally, one that speaks volumes about their power and overall depth. Then again, their opposition *has* been somewhat middling, feeble, and not at all worthy of being talked about.

Still, as far as NA teams go, Team Liquid and Cloud9 are at the very top of the food chain. Then there’s a vast chasm, after which come 100 Thieves and Evil Geniuses. Everyone else pales in comparison — it’s as if they’re competing in an entirely different league, an amateur one, perhaps.

Let’s not create any unnecessary tension: saying who’s the better team here is nigh impossible. They’re both so darn good at the game and they’re separated by the slimmest of margins — if even *that* much. These two have the best players, the highest skill ceilings, and actual *identities* — hence their dominance and sheer flexibility.

But we couldn’t possibly say who’s better. We’re leaning ever so slightly more towards Team Liquid because of their staggering experience and versatile nature, but those virtues and traits — impressive and vital though they are — don’t necessarily have to result in them getting the win.

The thing with Cloud9 is that they have no business being as good as they are. We knew they’d be able to put on a show and challenge the upper echelon, but not in our wildest dreams did we expect them to be *this* darn dominant; moreover, the fact that they’re playing such good LoL through a language barrier makes their performance all the more impressive and awe-inspiring.

The most important thing is that this surge of theirs doesn’t *seem* like a one-off thing — they’re really as good as they look. That’s at once both frightening *and* somewhat baffling. So many things needed to go in their favour for them to be this capable. And we had our doubts, much like everyone else, as the odds of everything “clicking” weren’t all that great. Fudge had just role swapped to mid, Berserker was promising but by no means a known quantity, and Winsome was a complete “no name”; everyone knew that Summit would be as good as he is, but no one could have predicted the speed at which he would acclimate to his newfound surroundings.

Fortunately for C9, the chips fell in their favour.

Fudge seems to be not only serviceable but also pretty darn great. Summit started wrecking house from the very moment he stepped foot on stage. And Berserker? One of the very best AD carries in NA. Granted, his opposition isn’t all that imposing and strong, but the point stands nonetheless. Even Winsome, a player who’s yet to make any mind-blowing plays, has been serviceable and “on point.” Not spectacular, mind you, but still far better and more consistent than most folks expected.

They’re not infallible, but the mistakes they make are few in numbers. And it’s always the little things, nothing overly egregious. Better yet, this Max Waldo-led Cloud9 has yet to lose. That’s the most interesting thing. We’ll let their loss to CLG slide as it came right off the organisation parting ways with LS, but ever since that point they’ve not only been stellar but have run circles around their opposition. They’re so confident in the way they play, it’s like there’s no hesitation whatsoever — they do as they please, and they have the right amount of skill and talent to pull it all off.

But Team Liquid are no less dangerous and capable. In fact, we’d argue that they have even more potential, at least in the long term. They’re a layered giant, whereas Cloud9 seems to be ever so slightly more one-dimensional. Still, they execute their plans with such staggering strength and bravado that most teams simply don’t have the strength to fight back and counter — they get overwhelmed.

Team Liquid, however, know their way around the Summoner’s Rift. This is one of the most stacked line-ups in Western history and they’ll be more than ready for whatever C9 might bring. They’re the favourites here and there’s a good reason why; still, they’re not necessarily better than Cloud9 and even if they are they’re still not guaranteed to come out victorious. There are simply too many intangibles and, more importantly, both teams have the tools and talent which are necessary to exploit each other’s weaknesses. Someone *will* make a mistake, that’s a given, but we’re not quite sure which of these two teams will be the one that makes it. C9 are inherently a high variance team so the odds of them fumbling *are* a bit higher, but that’s just a guess (albeit a well educated one).

We’ll go with Team Liquid, but it could really go either way — Cloud9 have an equal shot at getting the “W” and that’s something you absolutely have to keep in mind.