Team Liquid vs Cloud9: Lulu’s LCS Counterpick | LCS

TL;DR: Team Liquid are slight 53% favorites over Cloud9 in LCS Game 2, according to the draft model. Cloud9’s Lulu is a notable LCS answer to Nautilus: Lulu has a 44% win rate in 43 games, while Nautilus has a 67% win rate against her in just 6 LCS games.

Cloud9’s Lulu pick turns the bottom-lane matchup into a clash between a promising local counter and a small, conflicting sample: Lulu has won 44% of 43 LCS games, but Nautilus has beaten her in 67% of 6. Vulcan can blunt CoreJJ’s engage with shields and disengage, but Cloud9 must protect Tactical long enough for Yunara to become a sustained damage threat.

Compositions: Team Liquid vs Cloud9

Team Liquid pair Camille, Lee Sin, Galio, Ziggs and Nautilus for pick potential, engage and objective control. In the early game, Josedeodo’s Lee Sin can create skirmishes around Quid’s Galio, while CoreJJ’s Nautilus offers a reliable opening. Ziggs supplies poke and wave clear, helping Liquid control mid-game setups. Later, Camille can threaten the side lane, but Liquid still needs to coordinate Galio and Nautilus engages to reach Cloud9’s back line.

Cloud9 have a more protective, scaling-oriented composition: Jax, Xin Zhao, Orianna, Yunara and Lulu. Orianna brings teamfight control, while Lulu can keep Tactical alive through Liquid’s first engage. Jax offers a split-push threat, and Yunara is the primary late-game carry. Cloud9 want to stabilize early, then use Orianna’s area control and Lulu’s protection to fight on their terms.

Key Picks and Stats

Morgan’s Camille has a 51.4% global WR over 416G and a 53.3% LCS WR over 15G; his own LCS record is 50.0% over 2G, with a 6.5 KDA. Thanatos’s Jax is at 46.8% globally over 316G and 30.0% in the LCS over 10G. Camille’s global record against Jax is 50.0% over 8G, so the lane offers no decisive historical edge.

Josedeodo’s Lee Sin has a 54.6% global WR over 843G, but only 42.3% in the LCS over 26G. His LCS record on the pick is 80.0% over 5G, with an 8.1 KDA. Blaber’s Xin Zhao has a 49.1% global WR over 1419G and a 53.7% LCS WR over 54G; he is 60.0% over 5 LCS games on it, with a 2.1 KDA. The matchup is nearly even globally, but Xin Zhao has won 66.7% of 3 LCS games against Lee Sin.

Quid’s Galio stands at 47.7% globally over 591G and 48.0% in the LCS over 25G. Loki’s Orianna is stronger at 51.5% over 1057G globally and 56.6% over 53 LCS games. Orianna has won 71.4% of 7 LCS games against Galio, a clear lane concern for Liquid.

Yeon’s Ziggs has a 45.8% global WR over 354G and 42.1% in the LCS over 19G. Tactical’s Yunara has 50.5% over 1261G globally and 48.9% over 45 LCS games. Yunara has lost 66.7% of 3 LCS games against Ziggs, but that head-to-head sample is tiny. CoreJJ’s Nautilus has a 47.7% LCS WR over 44G; Vulcan’s Lulu is at 44.2% over 43G. Lulu’s 66.7% LCS WR against Nautilus comes from only 6 games, while CoreJJ has a 50.0% record over 2 LCS games on Nautilus.

Draft Edge

Liquid’s Camille and Nautilus can force fights, with Galio ready to follow and Ziggs controlling waves. Cloud9’s answers are meaningful: Orianna has the mid-lane statistical edge, Lulu can disrupt engages, and Jax can punish Liquid if Camille leaves the side lane. Cloud9’s standard, established combinations contrast with Liquid’s weaker champion and duo model signals, though Liquid’s engage gives them a direct route to start fights.

The pre-draft read expected Cloud9 to prioritize Ryze, Lucian and Rakan bans, with Gnar, Corki and Jarvan IV as Liquid’s priorities. It also projected an Orianna or Ezreal opening for Cloud9 and Ryze or Xayah for Liquid. The available draft data does not list the bans or pick order, so those expectations cannot be confirmed; neither Ryze nor Lucian appears in the final compositions. Lulu stands out against the forecast’s elite Gnar outlier, and her local record into Nautilus makes the bottom-lane choice especially interesting.

Polymarket Market

Polymarket prices Game 2 at Team Liquid 55% and Cloud9 46%; the Series market is Team Liquid 78% and Cloud9 22%. Before the match, the Series market was Team Liquid 36% and Cloud9 64%. That is a 42-percentage-point swing toward Liquid—not the supplied -13.0-point change, which conflicts with those listed prices.

The market is much more optimistic about Liquid taking the series than winning this particular game: its 78% series price is 23 points above its 55% Game 2 price. Liquid’s Game 1 win, a 31:40 result with an 8-20 kill score, provides immediate context for the series shift. For this map, Cloud9’s stronger mid-lane matchup and protective bottom-lane setup help explain why the Game price is closer than the Series price, even as the draft model narrowly favors Liquid.

Prediction

The model makes Team Liquid a 53%–47% favorite, and the draft supports only a narrow edge rather than a confident call. Liquid’s engage can decide objectives, but Orianna’s LCS advantage over Galio and Cloud9’s Lulu protection are real counterweights. Liquid’s Game 1 win adds momentum; Cloud9’s late-game scaling gives them a clear path if they survive the early pressure.

FAQ

*Data: draftlol live draft model + Polymarket, draft close.*