The LCS is experiencing something it’s never seen before. Every single team will head into the Spring split with the exact same five-player starting lineup they fielded during Winter.
That’s zero roster changes across all 10 teams. No swaps, no replacements, no emergency imports. It’s the first time this has happened in the league’s 13-year existence.
LCS teams have historically treated roster changes like a seasonal tradition. Struggling bot laner? Swap him out. Mid-jungle synergy not clicking? Blow it up and try again. The gap between Spring and Summer used to be prime shuffling season, with teams regularly gutting rosters after disappointing performances or international failures.
The new three-split format changes that math completely. Teams now have Winter, Spring, and Summer to work with. Committing to major changes after just Winter, especially since it’s a short split, would mean burning a third of the competitive year on roster instability.
Compare this to the LPL, which reportedly has at least 17 roster changes happening between its Winter and Spring segments despite having more games played. The difference shows just how conservative LCS teams are being with their current lineups.
