Here are my rankings for the 8 remaining teams of Masters 2. Feel free to debate below. Regardless of these rankings, I think any of these teams besides LEV and XSET could honestly win the championship, the gap is not large at all. This Masters' playoffs is stacked af and will be super exciting to watch.
- Fnatic
- Fnatic is still the best team for me coming into these playoffs. The form they showed in EMEA is just much too strong for me to doubt them at all. We still have to see how Alfajer plays on LAN, but I still think Fnatic is one of the teams with a very good chance at the trophy.
- OpTic
- Off to a shaky start, but this is the OpTic we thought we would see. A competitive win vs a very good Loud team and a dominant victory over a Kru team that beat Loud and brought Guild to the very edge shows that they are back in form just in time for playoffs. Plus, Marved has been on an absolute tear during this tournament. We could very well see the first 2x champions.
- DRX
- Maybe some people will think this is too high, but I am confident in DRX this time around. I like what I have seen in the group stages, especially with that bounceback win against FPX, and Rb has looked way better. They seem confident, and I would definitely keep eyes on DRX to go deep.
- FPX With Suygetsu
- With Suygetsu, this is a very formidable squad. If he is able to play during playoffs, I have no doubt that FPX will be able to showcase their firepower and skill. Shao and ardiis have been monsters so far, and adding a very talented player back in Suygetsu would be just the thing to give them a deep run in the playoffs.
- Paper Rex (tied with Guild)
- I have Paper Rex tied with Guild at 5/6 spot. I still think their playstyle is so hard to counter, and they looked very good in the APAC playoffs. In my eyes, Jinggg and f0rsakeN were just getting started last time, and they are ready to explode during playoffs. They are also in an EMEA heavy side of the bracket, which they're playstyle works very well against.
- Guild (tied with PRX)
- I really like Guild and I think they had a good showing in the group stage. I think they are definitely a dark horse during these playoffs, but it remains to be seen if they can keep up their good play under playoff pressure. Leo has been amazing though, one of the best players in the tournament for sure.
- Leviatan
- I don't know much about Leviatan, but I haven't been impressed by LATAM at all really. LATAM is also aim heavy, and I think they will break down against these strong teams in the playoffs. Plus, they have 0 international LAN experience and have to go against DRX first round.
- XSET
- Call me a hater, but I have no belief in XSET at all. Nothing about their game grabs my attention or sets them apart from anyone else. With no experience on LAN and a matchup with a red hot OpTic first round, I think XSET will be on their back foot for these playoffs. We could be seeing a Guard pt2.
- FPX With Seider
- If FPX can't play with Suygetsu, I think they are the weakest team in these playoffs. They did well to get out of groups, but I think playing with a sub that changes roles a little puts them at a huge disadvantage especially against these top tier teams. So far, it has been Shao/ardiis and friends, and that won't get them far in playoffs.
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