#3 Team Liquid
Poised to win The Shanghai Major, Liquid fell short and got second place. Poised to win The Manila Major, they fell short and got second place again. For Liquid, this is a chance to change what would be a tragic history of almosts, could’ves, and not quites. For Liquid, there is no second place; in their minds, they are first place or they are nothing. Despite their unfortunate ‘so close’ finishes this season, Team Liquid’s consistency across multiple patches and metagames deserves significant commendation. They have been able to find ways to diversify their picks and still remain at the top for more than half a year. Liquid is very capable of taking OG, Wings, Newbee, and any other team to three very close games. The question for Liquid is will they find the composure it takes to string together multiple series and wins in order to get the vengeance they seek.
Player to watch: Matumbaman
Matumbaman is the lynchpin of Team Liquid. With FATA and Mind_Control playing incredibly disciplined and routine DOTA with minimal risk taking, Matumbaman often takes it upon himself to be the space creator and playmaker. Matumbaman is deservedly considered the best Lycan in the world and despite not playing it for the past few events, I expect to see a resurgence of Lycan in the hands of Matumbaman when the going gets tough.
