"No time for losers," and all that, so let's make this quick.
Here are three things TSM need to work on now if they want to finish the Split with any level of their former success in the NA LCS.
#1) Take the leash off of Hauntzer
Your top laner is quality, so stop giving him tank duty. All four of TSM's wins have been in collusion with brilliant performances of Haunzter's Gangplank. The veteran has been around for a long time and has proven himself to be one of the best top laners in the North America, so stop strangling him with the meta collar.
Gnar might seem like a good idea, but guess what? They have never won with Gnar on their side all season. Nor have they won with anyone but Haunzter and his GP, so give him more freedom to express his aggressive tendencies and exploit the fact that he is mechanically superior to a lot of his lane opponents.
This doesn't mean the TSM top laner has to pick Gangplank, it only means that he NEEDS to play more autonomous champions that have less reliance on their team and more means to solo carry. GP is one. Camille is another.Jax? Irelia even?
The champion itself can change, but their playstyle can't: "Damage, splitpush, a team is nice but I don't need one, thanks."
#2) MikeYeung improves or MikeYeung gets sacked
No, I don't care that he's essentially a rookie. He's looking shakey: overaggressive, poor positioning, and bad late game macro make MikeYeung one of the most disappointing aspects of the entire split out of any team.
And I shouldn't have to say this, but Licorice is a rookie, too. And even with his bad performance against Echo Fox this last weekend, his overall effectiveness this split has been nothing short of incredible. Being a newbie to the scene is no excuse for not being well equipped for the scene, get it?
The most important thing for the jungler to work on is not needing his hand held in the late game. Mike manages to make some good plays and has excellent vision control early on which helps TSM gain their advantages (which they then lose proceed to lose in the late game,) so the loudest problem that anyone can hear from a mile away is screaming from his tendency to make stupid mistakes.
Don't carelessly get caught in the late game, don't stray too far from the team, and when your disengaging from a fight, disengage in the direction of your fountain you nitwit.
That's my best advice for the boy. And if he doesn't heed the instructions, I can't see him staying on Team SoloMid for much longer.
#3) Improve the communication with Zven and Mithy
They're good players, Zven and Mithy. What are you going to do? Fire them?
Ha.
It's a problem at TSM that is either being undermined and ignored or is being overstated and... well... ignored: Their communication is poor and thus the team cannot play cohesively.
Maybe it's just lies the coach has thrown at us while the team tries to figure out what is actually wrong with themselves, or maybe it's a legitimate concern that needs to be looked at.
Either way, we need answers as to why the bot lane duo is under-performing against opponents you'd expect them to wipe the floor with and I'm just not ready to say that it's because the duo are bad.
I mean, really. They're European, aren't they? They're supposed to be better than us Americans, but the trash they bring to the table isn't all that appetizing even for me. And I'm bloody starving.
Maybe I'm wrong about this, but it would seem they aren't a lone problem in a vacuum in the same way MikeYeung is. They just bring around some communication issues that should be sorted out sometime soon. And unlike Mike, they can perform well and the rest of the team will find ways to throw the advantages they have.
This doesn't mean they're perfect. In fact, in their last game against Cloud9 they were the quietest bot lane I'd ever seen: No inspiration, no daring plays, just a pretty creep score and a few deaths for their troubles. No, they're not perfect, but they have a lot going for them and I think they can find success at TSM with more cohesive circumstances.
#4) Bjerg has to stop misclicking cleanse
Just kidding.
Let us know what you think about our 3 biggest concerns for TSM in the 2018 Spring Split in the comments below!