Week two of the LCK Spring 2023 is well underway and there are two more intriguing match-ups to look forward to on Friday.
South Korea's LCK is arguably the leading division in the realm of League of Legends with three of the four semi-finalists at the World Championship 2022 hailing from the region.
And with this year's Worlds set to take place in South Korea, there is even more reason for the LCK's best and brightest to have strong campaigns.
The likes of Dplus KIA, formerly DWG KIA, and T1 were unsurprisingly the standout sides in week one of the LCK Spring 2023 and already punters are getting an idea of which teams will be pushing for the playoffs.
At the end of the playoff stage, the event's winners and runners-up will secure a spot at the Mid-Season Invitational 2023 - one of the most prestigious events in the Esport's calendar.
On Friday, week two of the LCK Spring 2023 continues with reigning world champions DRX taking on strugglers NS RedForce, while new-look Hanwha Life Esports lock horns with KT Rolster.
What | NS RedForce vs DRX |
Where | South Korea |
When | 01.00, Friday January 27th 2023 |
How to watch | LCK Twitch channel |
Odds | NS RedForce +250, DRX -350 |
DRX deserve respect as defending Worlds winners, but the team's roster was decimated coming into the LCK Spring 2023 and they are unlikely to hit the same level of performances they managed last year.
It was a shock as it was when DRX secured the Summoner's Cup at the end of last year, but losing Kim "Zeka" Geon-woo and Hwang "Kingen" Seong-hoon among others will have not done them any favours.
And there have already been signs that they will not be going as deep in major events this year in their opening performances at the LCK Spring 2023.
They have lost both of their matches at the split by 2-0 scorelines against big-hitters Dplus KIA and Gen.G and it is hard to envisage them forging a title challenge.
That said, next up is a softer opponent in the form of NS RedForce and DRX are expected to prevail at -350.
DRX have started poorly, but NS RedForce have been even worse, losing each of their first three matches and picking up only one map in the process.
DRX will view this as a great opportunity to return to winning ways and are worth backing to get back on track with a 2-0 win at +100.
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What | KT Rolster vs Hanwha Life Esports |
Where | South Korea |
When | 05.30, Friday January 27th 2023 |
How to watch | LCK Twitch channel, bet365 Sports Live Streaming |
Odds | KT Rolster +100, Hanwha Life Esports -138 |
After packing their roster with Worlds-winning experience, Hanwha Life Esports started the new LCK season with many anticipating a run to the playoffs.
But after week one, it is fair to say there are still some reservations about the side who last year finished bottom of both the LCK Spring and LCK Summer regular seasons.
Park "Viper" Do-hyeon, Kim "Zeka" Geon-woo and Hwang "Kingen" Seong-hoon are all great additions to the Hanwha Life Esports roster, with the latter two having won their World Championship titles only last year with DRX and impressing in best-of-five battles.
But it will naturally take time for the new roster to gel entirely and punters should not rush to back Hanwha Life Esports against KT Rolster.
They lost their second match in week one 2-1 to Liiv SANDBOX and even in their opening win of the LCK Spring against Kwangdong Freecs, they raised eyebrows when making LCK's first-ever Jhin support pick, which saw their bottom lane overrun and nearly put them on the back foot in the contest.
Decision-making will of course take time for them to master and in these early stages of the season, it can be risky to consistently back a team in transition like Hanwha Life Esports.
KT Rolster have played three matches in the LCK Spring so far, losing to T1 and Liiv SANDBOX either side of a victory against NS RedForce, and all three of their matches went to three maps.
That could certainly be the case again in this one and over 2.5 maps appeals at -110.
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