Will Cloud9 get back to winning ways? Or will the former champions be the latest to crumble under the pressure?

After a short hiatus, the LCS is back! North America’s best squads are ready to dive fully into the second round-robin as the road to MSI heats up. All eyes are firmly on Cloud9. Have the former LCS champions turned the corner after three weeks off, or will they pick up right where they left off? Another team to look out for this weekend is 100 Thieves; they currently sit in second place, but how will they fair after having their momentum halted by the break? ESTNN is here to break down the most exciting storylines heading into week five of the 2024 LCS Spring Split.

How Will Cloud9 Fair After Break?

Although teams such as FlyQuest and 100 Thieves have been impressive thus far, this split's most significant talking point is the failure of Cloud9’s superteam. Although history will tell you superteams in League of Legends do not work out, many believed Cloud9 would break this trend, given the familiarity the majority of their players had with one another before their first games on stage.

Cloud9 has been on a 1-6 run since their 3-0 start to the Spring Split. They haven’t just been beaten in these games. They have been embarrassed. Their last outing saw them throw away an almost 10k gold lead after fighting back from a 5k deficit to 100 Thieves. This game summed up C9’s campaign thus far, which is hopeless. From game to game, C9 has consistently changed the type of compositions they want to play. Apart from their poor performances on the rift, the number of coaches Cloud9 has at its disposal could point towards a more significant problem for the organization. Outside of Alfonso “Mithy” Aguirre Rodríguez, only VeigarV2 is part of the Cloud9 LCS coaching staff, working remotely from Europe.

In a recent interview with Cloud Sidky, Mithy mentioned Hai “Hai” Du Lam is also learning the ropes in the coaching department while fulfilling his player management duties. So, between Mithy, VeigarV2, and Hai, C9 has one head coach, a remote coach operating in a different timezone, and a manager learning his trade as a coach. Compared to other top organizations in the league, C9 needs to catch up in this department. Cloud9, in the past, has benefited greatly from having a large support group for its players. Whereas in 2024, C9 has one of the smallest coaching departments in the league, well below the standards of an organization expecting to win both LCS splits.

Cloud9 must start to pick up wins if they are to make the playoffs. Their first two opponents back after the break are the number one team in FlyQuest and the team that gave them a lesson in League of Legends in Team Liquid.

Do 100 Thieves Continue To Impress?

The most in-form team in the league, 100 Thieves, has been excellent thus far and is currently on a four-game winning streak going into the fifth week of the regular season. 100T sits alone in second place with a 6-3 record, and only FlyQuest has more wins than the young LCS squad at seven. It will be interesting to hear how 100 Thieves tackled the extended break, given it came at the worst time when the team was red hot. The break can be detrimental to a team's season, with their momentum being snatched away from them. Where Cloud9 could receive the positive benefits from the break, for 100 Thieves, it could go against the young squad.

Quid was one of the standout players during the first four weeks of play. With his feet firmly settled, the Korean Mid has an LCS all-pro position in his sights. According to Oracle’s Elixir, Quid ranks second in the KDA standings for Mid-lane with a 4.0 KDA and first in Gold Difference at 10 minutes with 271. Where 100 Thieves shines the brightest is in the mid-game with a rating of 26.1 – the highest of any team during the first nine games. 100 Thieves takes on Dignitas on Saturday, followed by a battle for first place with FlyQuest on Sunday.

Marn’s LCS Week 5 Predictions

Starting with Cloud9, although the break will have come at the best time, they have not gotten the easiest opponents to start with, quite frankly, the hardest. FlyQuest will want to keep C9 down as much as possible, and Team Liquid is far superior in the macro department. According to The Pros podcast, C9 looks much better in practice. The question is whether they can make a dent to avoid another 0-2 week.

As for 100 Thieves, they need to remain the course. A 1-1 week is more than okay for this squad as they look to secure, at worst, a top-three finish in the regular season. Every game until the end of the regular season is a grand final for 100 Thieves. They must take it one game at a time and not think too far into the future. They must ensure they are in good form and heading into unknown territory, the best-of-fives. Here are my predictions for the games this week.

FlyQuest vs Cloud9: FlyQuest WIN

Dignitas vs 100 Thieves: 100T WIN

TL vs NRG: NRG WIN

Immortals vs Shopify Rebellion: IMT WIN

FlyQuest vs 100 Thieves: FLY WIN

NRG vs Immortals: NRG WIN

TL vs Cloud9: C9 WIN

Dignitas vs Shopify Rebellion: DIG WIN

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