T1 and Gen.G are the LCK’s two powerhouse teams, finishing first and second on the table after the group stage, and while they face each other on Saturday, many people expect them to meet again in the grand final in 10 days. T1 has a record of 17 wins and one loss heading into the upper-bracket final, while Gen.G has a record of 14 wins and five losses after defeating Hanwha Life Esports in the upper-bracket semi-final to make the final.

T1 is without a doubt the greatest LCK team, having won eight LCK titles and three League of Legends World Championship titles since their inception in 2013. Along with being the greatest LCK team of all time, they also produced the greatest League of Legends player of all time, Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok. This team has a reputation for winning championships and being extremely difficult to beat season after season, and they also believe that no one is better than them or fears them on a regional or global scale.

T1 finished the LCK Spring 2022 split as the only team to ever go undefeated at a regional or global split, finishing with a 20-0 record, and has nearly replicated that effort with a 17-1 record to end the LCK Spring 2023 split’s group stage. T1 has had Gen.G on the ropes during the LCK Spring split, looking to avenge their 0-3 defeat in the LCK Summer 2022 grand final late last year. T1 defeated Gen.G twice during the group stage (2-0 and 2-1). If T1 defeats Gen.G convincingly on Saturday, they will enter the grand final as heavy favourites, looking to finish their split with a 19-1 record.

As for Gen.G, they had somewhat of a chequered LCK Spring split, where they got into a battle with KT Rolster and Dplus KIA for second place in the final four games of the split. Gen.G entered the split as the reigning LCK champions, having defeated T1 3-0 in the grand final after losing only one series during the 2022 LCK Summer split. There is no doubt that the loss of two of the best Korean-born bottom lane players, Park “Ruler” Jae-hyuk and Son “Lehends” Si-woo, has had a significant impact on the team’s ability to consistently compete with the likes of T1. To turn the tables on T1, Gen.G will need to devise a completely new game plan and play three flawless maps in order to win the best-of-five series.

T1 has been dominant throughout the split, and they clearly had the best most consistent team during the group stage. We believe Gen.G can steal one map from the favourites, but that’s all. We’ll take T1 with $1.90 at the -1.5 match line.

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Assured of first place heading into the final week of the group stage, T1 maintained their dominance with back-to-back 2-0 series wins over Dplus KIA and Nongshim RedForce, finishing with 17 wins and one loss.

The second seed was up for grabs over the final two weeks, with only one win separating Dplus KIA, Gen.G, and KT Rolster.

With back-to-back 2-0 victories over Hanwha Life Esports and Dplus KIA, Gen.G flexed their muscles and clinched the second seed with a better map difference (+17) than KT Rolster (+13), who finished with the same 13-5 record.

Aside from the obvious in T1, third-placed KT Rolster enter the playoffs as one of the hottest teams in the LCK, with a six-match win streak that includes victories over Gen.G, Dplus KIA, Hanwha Life Esports, and SANDBOX Gaming.

Dplus KIA started the final week of the group stage with a one-win advantage over Gen.G and KT Rolster in the battle for second place, but they lost their final two series to T1 and Gen.G, dropping them from second to fourth on the final day.

Hanwha Life Esports (fifth) and SANDBOX Gaming (sixth) were the only two teams that were unable to improve their positions in the final week, as they were scheduled to face off in their final group stage match.

HLE won the series 2-1, but given that both teams have been beaten by the top four teams multiple times this split, it’s difficult to see them making it past the first round of the playoffs.

The top two seeds advance to the upper-bracket semifinals, where T1 and Gen.G will await the winners of the upper-bracket quarterfinals.

The upper-bracket quarterfinals will take place on Wednesday and Thursday, with the loser of each match eliminated from the playoffs.

Below is the list of quarterfinals, with odds courtesy of GG Bet.

• KT Rolster ($1.44) vs SANDBOX Gaming ($2.62) on Wednesday @ 5pm KST
• Dplus KIA ($1.33) vs Hanwha Life Esports ($3.25) on Thursday @ 5pm KST

2023 #LCK SPRING PLAYOFFS BRACKET

Regular season 3rd place KT has selected @LiivSANDBOX as their first round opponent!
The remaining team @HLEofficial is automatically slotted to play @DplusKIA!

The first match of Round 1 is on Wed, March 22, 5pm [KST]! pic.twitter.com/lo3LfKOFUH

— LCK (@LCK) March 19, 2023

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The first series on Saturday will see the sixth-placed SANBOX Gaming clash with fifth-placed Hanwha Life Esports, with the winner of this series taking fifth place on the table and the loser finishing in sixth place. The last time these two teams met SANDBOX took the series 2-1 in the opening week of the spring split.

The second half of the LCK Spring split for 2023 hasn’t been great for SANDBOX Gaming as they have been beaten in four of their last seven series, with those defeats coming at the hands of T1, Kwangdong Freecs, KT Rolster, Gen.G. With SANDBOX dropping from third to sixth in the final four weeks of the split, the form slump could not have come at a worse time. This series against Hanwha Life Esports will be the battle between the two teams who come into the playoffs with the worst form, as HLE have lost their last four series.

As we mentioned above, Hanwha Life Esports come into this series looking for their first win in five matches, after losing to Dplus KIA, KT Rolster, T1 and Gen.G in consecutive series. Although HLE can’t be knocked out of the playoffs, there is very little reason to think that even if they win this series, that they will be a serious threat in the playoffs. HLE are the only team to defeat T1, but when you look at how dominant T1 has been since and how poor HLE have been, it looks as though T1 had an off day.

We were surprised to see SANDBOX Gaming open as the outsiders with GG Bet in this series, so we are more than happy to back the outsiders to take out their final series of the regular season.

With the third-placed Gen.G taking on second-placed Dplus KIA, the second series on Saturday sets up to be the biggest and most exciting series on the final weekend of the LCK Spring split. Dplus has a record of 12-4 with a map difference of +16, Gen.G has a record of 11-5 with a map difference of +13, so Gen.G will need a 2-0 victory to jump Dplus and take second spot on map difference. However, if KT Rolster wins their last two series, which they are expected to do, they could take second place on their own with a record of 13-5, superior to both of these teams.

The last time these two Korean powerhouses met, Gen.G dominated and took out the series 2-0, as they were in the midst of a six-game win streak. Gen.G have won three of their last four series, with their only loss coming at the hands of Kwangdong Freecs, where they went down in a very tight three map series. This series is a must-win for Gen.G, as they need to win to put themselves in the conversation for second position on the table, which would see them avoid T1 in the second week of the playoffs.

Dplus KIA have found form at the right time of the split, recording six wins in their last seven series, with their only defeat coming to T1 in their most recent series on Wednesday. Although, Dplus have played the bottom four teams and won against all of them, winning form is good form. With a 2-0 win over Gen.G in this series, Dplus will take second place and KT Rolster won’t be able to overtake them, even if they win both of their remaining series 2-0.

This series should be a cracking clash between two juggernauts of the LCK, therefore, we will be backing the overs in the total maps market.

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The first series to be played on Thursday in the LCK will see first-placed T1 and second-placed Dplus KIA clash for the second time this split, after T1 took the first meeting 2-1 back in week two.

T1 are the only team in the top six that cannot move in the standings, as their record of 15-1 puts them four wins ahead of their closest rival, Dplus KIA. T1 have won their last 10 matches, with their only defeat coming in week three at the hands of Hanwha Life Esports. They have already booked their spot in the upper-bracket semifinals, but they can still play a big role in deciding where Dplus KIA can finish in the top four.

Dplus KIA currently sit second in the LCK standings with a 12-4 record, one win ahead of Gen.G and KT Rolster, so they must win one of their final two series to finish in the top two. However, their final two matches will be against T1 and Gen.G, which means they will have to be at their best, as they lost to both of those teams the last time they met. Dplus are currently on a six-series win streak, so if there was any time to meet those two top teams, it’s now.

We should be in for another cracking series between these top-tier LCK teams. They went to three maps earlier in the split, and we expect to see another thrilling contest that goes the distance.

The second series of the day will pit fifth-placed Hanwha Life Esports against third-placed Gen.G, with both teams needing a win to keep their chances of finishing in the top four and top two alive, respectively.

Hanwha Life Esports enter this series against Gen.G having lost three of their previous four series, going down to KT Rolster, T1, and Dplus KIA. HLE clawed their way back into contention during the middle stages of the LCK Spring, defeating T1 and racking up five consecutive victories. However, HLE have struggled against some of the top teams they will face in the playoffs, which does not bode well for their title chances.

Gen.G come into this series in similar form, having won just one of their last three series while losing the other two to Kwangdong Freecs and KT Rolster. Gen.G will be relieved that their fortunes have improved after defeating BRION 2-0 in their most recent series. They will also have in the back of their mind that they defeated HLE in a close 2-1 series the last time they met, which should be more positive motivation. Gen.G need to win both of their remaining series against HLE and Dplus KIA and hope that Dplus slip up and loses to T1, giving them the best chance to finish second at the end of the split.

These two teams will be desperate for a win on Thursday, so we don’t expect a 2-0 victory either way, so we’ll take the overs in the total maps market.

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Promoting the entire academy roster hasn’t worked out for Nongshim RedForce, who are guaranteed to miss the LCK Spring playoffs and will likely end the split in last place. However, their best chance to win a game will come this Thursday when Nongshim RedForce meet with another struggling team, Kwangdong Freecs.

Kwangdong Freecs have managed just three wins this split (3-11) with a 32% map win rate (11-23) which is far from great. On a more positive note, Kwangdong Freecs won against Liiv SANDBOX (2-1) last week, which explains why they’re $1.67 favourites with LoL betting sites.

Kwangdong Freecs looked like an entirely different team with strong teamfighting and solid drafting, but there are no guarantees that they’ll perform as well this week. We expect KDF to win, but we don’t expect it to be a 2-0 sweep.

KT Rolster threatened to climb to the top part of LCK standings in Week 6, but then in their fashion, disappointed with two 0-2 losses against Dplus KIA and T1. However, KT Rolster didn’t need long to bounce back and picked up two huge wins against Gen.G (2-1) and Liiv SANDBOX (2-0) last week, which secured them a spot in LCK 2023 Spring playoffs.

Hanwha Life Esports did the same with a strong showing over the last three weeks (5-1). However, over that stretch, they’ve only beaten teams ranked seventh or lower, yet they were no match for Dplus KIA (0-2) on Saturday.

Even though Hanwha Life Esports aren’t to be underestimated, they’ve not looked quite as good as KT Rolster recently and are also 0-1 down in the head-to-head. This could go to three games, but we’re taking KT Rolster to come out ahead.

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The first series of the day will pit fourth-placed Hanwha Life Esports against second-placed Dplus KIA, with the winner taking sole possession of second place.

Since losing to Dplus KIA in week four, Hanwha Life Esports has won their last five series against Nongshim RedForce (twice), BRION, and Kwangdong Freecs, with all but one series win coming by a 2-0 score. Even if HLE wins this series against Dplus KIA, they will need to maintain their high level of play, as their remaining matches will be against all of the current top six.

Their final two series against SANDBOX Gaming and Gen.G are pivotal matches that could have serious ramifications for the playoff picture, so HLE must win the majority of their remaining series to remain in the top four.

Dplus KIA will be confident going into this series against Hanwha Life Esports after dominating them in week four, winning with a massive kill difference of 20-4 across the two maps. Dplus, on the other hand, will need to be ready for a reenergized and much better HLE this time around, as they bring winning form into this series and will have learned a lot since the last time they met.

Dplus have one of the easiest schedules of any of the top six teams, with only three series against other top six teams to play in their final five games. If Dplus wins their series against HLE, they should be very close to securing a top two spot if they also win their series against BRION and Nonshim RedForce.

We anticipate a much closer series between Dplus KIA and Hanwha Life Esports, so we will be taking the overs in the total maps market.

The bottom two teams in the LCK will clash in the second series on Saturday, with last-placed Nongshim RedForce taking on second-to-last-placed DRX.

Nongshim RedForce have had a forgettable LCK Spring split, with only one win out of 13 series played. Since winning their only series against DRX in week two back in January, NS has lost their last nine. Nongshim has only a few positives to take from this split, as they have been beaten 2-0 in nine of their 13 games so far. Although Nongshim RedForce defeated DRX the last time these two organisations met, DRX appears to be in much better shape than Nongshim RedForce.

In week six, DRX won their second series of the LCK Spring split, defeating BRION 2-1, before falling to Dplus KIA 0-2 in their most recent series. Since losing to Nongshim RedForce in week two, DRX has won more series than their opponent, implying that they are in better shape for this second meeting. This new DRX roster is starting to gel after playing together for a few months, and they have been difficult to beat in many of their matches against top-ranked teams. They enter this series as deserving favourites, looking for their third victory of the split against another struggling roster.

Nongshim RedForce and DRX are set to play another three-map thriller, similar to their first meeting in week two, so we’ll take the overs in the total maps market.

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The first series of the day will see seventh-placed BRION taking on ninth-placed DRX, with the former needing a win to keep in contact with the jam-packed top six on the LCK table.

BRION come into this matchup with DRX off the back of losing five of their last six series, with their only victory being over fellow strugglers Kwangdong Freecs two series back. However, in three of those six series, BRION have managed to go the distance and play all three maps against Hanwha Life Esports (twice) and Freecs. The one thing that keeps hindering BRION is their consistency in between maps and in between series, with their relatively young roster struggling to play at the high level that is needed in a top league. BRION will go in as favourites this Sunday, but they will still need to play at their best to get past the second-bottom team.

After recording their only win of the LCK Spring split in week two, DRX have since gone on to lose their last six series (at the time of writing). As we have spoken about all split, this DRX roster is nowhere near as talented as the one that claimed the 2022 LoL World Championship, with four new players being signed in the offseason. DRX are starting to fall off as we hit the middle part of the LCK Spring split, with their last three losses coming in 0-2 fashion against T1, KT Rolster and Hanwha Life Esports. With their rapid decline in form, DRX will struggle to record another win before the end of the split.

BRION and DRX went the distance in their last meeting, so we will taking the overs again in the total maps market.

The second of the two series to be played on Sunday will feature eighth-placed Kwangdong Freecs taking on one of the hottest teams in the LCK, Hanwha Life Esports.

Kwangdong Freecs are the best of the bottom three teams, owning 2-8 record with wins against KT Rolster and Nongshim RedForce in weeks three and four before going on their current two-game losing streak. Outside of those two winning weeks, the Freecs have struggled in the majority of their series, and we predict that they will struggle again this weekend.

One of the hottest teams in the LCK is the now fifth-placed Hanhwa Life Esports, who have won five of their last six series – including a massive win over T1, which is still the only defeat the league leaders have suffered so far this split. The last time these two teams met was in the first week of the season, where HLE were very impressive recording a 2-0 victory. With a win 2-0 win against the Freecs in this series, HLE would jump into fourth spot on the table behind T1, Gen.G Esports and Dplus KIA.

With the Freecs going through a tough run of form of late, we expect to see them struggle against Hanwha Life Esports; therefore, we will be taking the favourites at the match line.

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Hanwha Life Esports have won five of their last six series since the start of week three, with their only defeat coming at the hands of Dplus KIA at the end of week four. This new HLE roster is finally starting to click and reach the heights that the organisation would have hoped for when they signed the likes of Kim “Clid” Tae-min, Park “Viper” Do-hyeon and Kim “Life” Jeong-min from top-tier teams in the LPL and LCK. With matches coming up against BRION, Kwangdong Freecs and Nongshim RedForce, before facing Dplus KIA again, these next two weeks set up as a chance for HLE to keep the pressure on the top four and potentially push for a top two finish, as KT Rolster, Gen.G and SANDBOX Gaming all sit one win above them on the table.

BRION are in a similar position to that of their opponents for this series as they currently sit in seventh place, two wins behind Hanwha Life Esports and Dplus KIA. However, there is little hope for BRION to make finish in the top six and make playoffs as they will face HLE, DRX, T1 and Gen.G in their next four matches, with only one of those teams sitting below them on the table. The last time BRION faced HLE, they were able to take a map off them but still went down 1-2 in week four. However, the difference between HLE in week four to week six is huge, so they will have to step it up again if they want to take this series.

Hanwha Life Esports will come into this series as heavy favourites and it is well-deserved as they are making a run for a top-two position. HLE look the goods in this match, so we will be taking them at the map handicap.

T1 have once again proved that they are best team in the LCK, taking their record to 9-1 through their first 10 matches, with their only defeated coming at the hands of Hanwha Life Esports in week three. Since that loss to HLE, T1 have been much better in their four series against BRION, DRX, SANDBOX Gaming and Gen.G, flexing their muscles against the two teams that many were predicting to challenge them for top spot. T1, led by their star player and one of the greatest League of Legends player of all time, Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok, have continued to build through their split and have all but cemented their spot at the top of the table.

SANDBOX Gaming have been very consistent throughout their LCK Spring split, defeating all of the teams that sit below them outside of Dplus KIA, who they have lost to once. However, SANDBOX did beat Dplus KIA in their last series 2-0 after going down 1-2 in a tight series with T1. With a confidence building win against Dplus KIA and tight loss to T1 at their most recent match-ups, we expect to see a better SANDBOX Gaming in this series and we could be in for a cracking series between two of the better LCK teams.

T1 will be heavy favourites for another of their series, which comes as no surprise to us; however, this series is going to be a close one. We will be taking the overs in the total maps market at the generous odds of $2.00 with GG Bet.

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Nongshim RedForce are 1-9 and haven’t won a game since the second week of LCK 2023 Spring when they took down DRX (2-1). Their only notable performance since was winning a map against T1 at the start of the month, but that is overshadowed by Nongshim RedForce’s four consecutive 0-2 defeats leading into this match.

With a 7-3 record, Gen.G find themselves at the opposite end of the league table, where they sit equal-second on points with KT Rolster. While they have dropped at least one map in five series, even that statistic doesn’t make us doubt Gen.G for this affair.

Nongshim RedForce are not at the level of Gen.G, and their 8.6 kills and 11.9 death average per game suggest that this series, while one-sided, won’t be as bloody as it may seem.

KT Rolster are odds-on favourites with LoL betting sites to defeat Dplus KIA, which makes sense. Even though Dplus KIA are still an excellent team, they haven’t looked nearly as good as KT Rolster this split.

KT Rolster are on a streak of five wins, which includes a 2-1 victory against Dplus KIA just under two weeks ago. Much of KT Rolster’s success is thanks to mid laner Gwak “Bdd” Bo-seong, who has found his 2019 form and is currently one of the highest-rated mid laners in the league.

Dplus KIA should be able to deal with Bdd with the help of Heo “ShowMaker” Su, but they might again come out short as they did last time out when it was clear that Dplus KIA don’t have the tools to compete with KT in the bottom and top lanes. We could see another three-map series, but this is KT Rolster’s game to lose.

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Jeong “Becker” Hoi-toon, the team’s general manager, revealed that the move was made in a bid to follow Riot Games’ regulations concerning international events, including the LoL World Championship and Mid-Season Invitational.

“For round 2, Sky’ Kim Ha-neul, our League of Legends team coach, will be registered as a player. According to the rulebook for international events hosted by Riot Games (such as MSI and Worlds), a participating team is required to register at least one substitute player,” he explained.

Becker also disclosed that Sky would be signed with an official player contract for his new role. Prior to the change, T1 had five players and four coaches.

In accordance with LoL Esports’ Summoner Name policy, Becker disclosed that for the duration of his time as a substitute, Sky’s IGN will be changed to “Skyyy”.

T1’s current roster consists of Choi “Zeus” Woo-je, Ryu “Keria” Min-seok, Moon “Oner” Hyeon-joon, Lee “Gumayusi” Min-hyeong, Sang-hyeok “Faker” Lee, and Skyyy as a substitute.

T1 have enjoyed a fantastic start to the split, recording seven wins — four of those clean sweeps — from their first eight games. The team’s only defeat so far was a shock 1-2 defeat to Hanwha Life Esports at the start of February.

T1 are set to face a serious challenge this week as the first phase of the split comes to a close. They face third-placed SANDBOX Gaming on Friday, then take on second-placed Gen.G on Sunday, February 19.

Esports betting sites have T1 pegged as $1.20 favorites to beat SANDBOX ($4.10), while they are $1.27 to emulate their Week 1 victory against Gen.G ($3.40).

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