IEM Katowice: Picks & Bans Analysis!

IEM Katowice in Poland has just concluded and the winning team of the event, which played under a new tag, was Gambit Gaming. Now, let’s take a look at everything that happened so far and let’s see what were the bans and the picks that teams aimed for!





Still Public Enemy Number One!



The champion that received the biggest attention and got banned the most, during the tournament, is still the same as at the last event we analyzed, the IPL 5. Teams are still afraid of Lee Sin, the Blind Monk, because of his high damage potential and great mobility, not to mention his early gank pressure. He was banned a total of 14 games out of 19 games. Following his place, with 12 bans, was the Widowmaker – Evelynn. Her ability to be anywhere on the map and to deal great damage, in a short time, was just something that teams couldn’t overlook! Last, but not least, was Kha’Zix being banned a total of 11 times! Able of heavy pokes with Void Spike, reset on gap closer leap whenever a kill or assist is scored and extremely high damage, in the right situation, were all reasons for which teams had to be careful with him. Paul ‘sOAZ‘ Boyer saw success when he finally got to play the Voidreaver, winning 2 out of 3 games!





My Axe Is Thirsty!



Olaf, the Berserker, was picked or banned in nearly every game, during the IEM Katowice event. The champion was picked a total of 11 times and banned 8 times making him the highest picked in the tournament. His ultimate, Ragnarok, gives him the ability to be immune to every crowd control allowing him to charge straight, without any concerns, to the Carries. Despite the high pick and ban percentage, he only managed to achieve 4 wins. Ezreal was also one of the most picked champions, with a total of 11 times, during the course of the tournament. His pokes from safe range, his great damage output and his reliable escape method made him the most played AD Carry in the tournament! As for the supports, Sona was the most played one, being picked a total of 10 times. Not only she offers a very good sustain in lane, but also has, at her disposal, a wide range stun and great early pokes. Edward ‘Ed Ward‘ Abgarian played a great Sona throughout the tournament landing key ultimates onto the enemy teams, locking them in place while his teammates could finished them off.





The Surprise Pick



When Gambit Gaming decided to pick Renekton, the entire audience couldn’t believe it! The champion has not seen competitive play for a really long time and didn’t do well the few times he was actually picked. Gambit Gaming, nevertheless, showed the entire world why he is still a champion to be reckoned with, winning 4 times and only losing one game! His ability to shred the enemy’s armor by 35% with the fury bonus, on his Slice and Dice, was enough for the AD Bruiser composition to work! His laning phase was also rather easy thanks to his decent sustain in lane using Cull the Meek.





What do you guys think of the bans and picks of the tournament? Were you surprised by any of the picks? Share your thoughts below!