LPL and LCK Picks, Predictions, Best Bets June 17

• Two major tournaments happen side by side this week, and some favorites will be in action
• There isn’t much between Edward Gaming and JD Gaming but Edward Gaming might prefer the matchup 
• Royal Never Give Up should win their match quite easily

Edward Gaming

Edward Gaming vs JD Gaming Predictions

Edward Gaming Have Nothing to Fear

Edward Gaming head into this match with two wins from their two matches in the summer season so far. They’ll be quietly confident that they can make it three in a row. In the summer season, they won 10 of their league matches and lost six. This was enough to help them qualify for the playoffs but they were knocked out 3-1 fairly early, in the second round, by Weibo Gaming.

They beat JD Gaming in the league stages 2-0 and will be feeling fairly good about their chances. They’ll need to be at their best though and Mid Laner, Scout, will be key to that. He has had a great year, averaging 4.07 kills per round, 1.82 deaths, 6.11 assists and had a KDA of 5.59. He will be hoping to carry the side to victory.

JD Gaming Have Also Started the Season on Fire

Like Edward Gaming, JD Gaming have also started the season very well. They’ve won the two games that they’ve contested so far and will be well aware that their upcoming opponents won’t give them an easy ride, having lost to them when they faced each other in the Spring season league stages.

JD Gaming were decent in the league stages last season with 11 wins and 5 losses but it was their playoff run that really showed how good they can be on their day. They made it as far as the fourth round and came short 3-2 against the eventual winners, Royal Never Give Up (RNG). They disappointingly lost to Victory Five in the losers’ bracket match, however.

Their key man in this fixture is Hope. He has averaged 4.77 kills, 2.28 deaths, 5.96 assists and has a KDA of 4.71 this year. JD Gaming have had the same roster for a while with a few changes in between. They should be fairly confident they can take on anyone on their day and will be hoping to make it to the playoffs at the very least. For this match, there isn’t a great difference in the odds but we’ve gone for Edward Gaming because of the result from their previous encounter.

Royal Never Give Up vs FunPlus Phoenix Pick

SK Gaming

Royal Never Give Up vs FunPlus Phoenix Predictions

Royal Never Give Up Are Massive Favorites

Royal Never Give Up go into this match as heavy favorites and for good reason. They were the Spring season league winners and were second in the league standings with 12 wins and four losses. However, they can’t enter this match with much complacency as one of the losses in the league stages came against their upcoming opponents. They are yet to play a match in the Summer season and FunPlus Phoenix were their first opponent last time out as well.

They haven’t made any changes to their successful side and they really don’t need to. Mid Laner, Xiaohu, will be a key player for them. He has averaged 4.27 kills, 1.99 deaths, 7.05 assists with a KDA of 5.7.

FunPlus Phoenix Have Nothing to Lose

FunPlus Phoenix just about made the playoffs last time with eight wins and eight losses in the league stage. They’ll want to get a win rate of over 50% this time around and maybe got a bit further in the playoffs than they did last time out.

In 2022, Lwx has been their main player. He has averaged 3.63 kills, 2.5 deaths, 5 assists and had a KDA of 3.45 per round. He has been with the team since 2017 and this has been beneficial for the side as far continuity is concerned.

If Royal Never Give Up get their basics right, they should comfortably have this one in the bag. FunPlus Phoenix won’t have anything to fear but Royal Never Give Up winning this is as safe a bet as it gets.

Liiv SANDBOX vs Kwangdong Freecs Picks

Kwangdong Freecs

Liiv SANDBOX vs Kwangdong Freecs Predictions

Liiv SANDBOX Will Be Hoping to Improve on Last Season

Liiv SANDBOX did not make it to the playoffs last season with a 9th place finish. They were the second worst side in the league. They’ll be desperate to change their fortunes this season but it won’t be easy and their first opponents for the season are a pretty good side. They lost both their matches to Kwangdong Freecs last time out and it’s hard to make a case for them heading into this match.

If they do get something, it’ll have to be a team effort because they don’t have a player of outstanding quality in their roster and there hasn’t been any shake up just before heading into this season. The bot laner, Ice, is probably the most impressive player in the side. In 2022, he has averaged 2.44 kills, 2.47 deaths, 3.03 assists with a KDA of 2.22. They’ll need a lot more than to get the better of most of the teams in the league.

Kwangdong Freecs Should Win This

Kwangdong Freecs have got one game out of the way for this season and come out victorious. They’ll be hopeful that they can have a better season this time around even though the previous season wasn’t too bad.

They won eight and lost 10 of their matches, but their playoff run wasn’t too bad. They made it to the semifinals but were eventually outclassed 3-0 by eventual winners T1. They’ll be hoping that their league form can improve this time around.

Key to that will be bot laner, Teddy. He has averaged 3.9 kills, 1.58 deaths, 4.38 assists and a KDA of 5.24 this year. If you were to compare this with the players from Liiv SANDBOX, it just shows the difference in quality. We think Kwangdong Freecs should win this one comfortably.

T1 vs Nongshim RedForce Pick

T1

T1 vs Nongshim RedForce Predictions

T1 Are as Safe a Bet as It Gets

T1 will start their campaign against Nongshim RedForce and will probably treat this game like a warm-up. They were the winners in the spring season and were undefeated the whole way through. They played 18 matches and won all 18. They are the favorites to win it all once again and it’s just a matter of predicting how they go about winning their matches.

They’ve got an outstanding array of talent but the Jungler, Oner, has been particularly impressive this year. He has averaged 3.54 kills, 1.89 deaths, 7.31 assists with a KDA of 5.74. This is a team with excellent players throughout its roster and no real weaknesses.

Nongshim Redforce Will Just Try to Be as Competitive as Possible

Nongshim RedForce will not be expected to get much out of this game but facing a strong opponent early on in the season is great preparation for later. They weren’t great last season with only five wins in their 18 matches and failing to make the playoffs. They’ll be desperately hoping that they can improve on that in the coming season.

Key to that improvement will be their Jungler, Dread. He has averaged 2.33 kills, 2.62 deaths, 4.82 assists and 2.73 KDA this year. These stats aren’t mightily impressive but there aren’t many in this side who have better numbers. This is another side lacking the quality to make a difference. Don’t spend too much time overthinking this one. T1 should have this wrapped up.

How to Watch LPL-LCK 2022