Gwak “Bdd” Bo-seong, the mid laner for Longzhu Gaming, said he recently changed his goals and aspirations for the summer split after a conversation with Kim “PraY” Jong-in.
Longzhu dealt a 2-0 defeat to SK Telecom T1 on Thursday, firmly positioning itself in second place of League Champions Korea. In the post-match interview with OGN casters Kim “Dangun” Eui-joong and Lee “CloudTemplar” Hyun-woo, Bdd said PraY told him to aim higher.
“I was looking at making it to worlds and the LCK playoffs, but when we were talking as a team, I asked ‘we can make it to the playoffs right?’ and PraY said ‘You were aiming for the playoffs? You should look at taking the tournament!’ he said. “So I am now also doing so. “
PraY’s confidence isn’t misplaced, as Longzhu making it to the playoffs is at this point a bygone conclusion. Second only to Samsung Galaxy, Longzhu is considered the newest member of the LCK’s top teams, which was previously made up of only SKT, Samsung, and KT Rolster. Despite the team’s struggles last split, Longzhu has made an impressive turnaround into a contender.
Support player Kang “GorillA” Beom-hyun was also an MVP of the match, as he dominated the game as Blitzcrank, a champion he never plays. The surprise pick clearly worked as GorillA’s mechanical prowess as the Steam Golem was a masterclass of hooks, harkening to the old days of masters such as Hong “Madlife” Min-ki. But GorillA said that it was an uphill journey for him, especially in the past.
“When I was a part of Najin Shield, I couldn’t find the chance to play Blitzcrank because MadLife and Mata (Cho Se-hyeong) were so famously good as him,” he said. “I used it once with Zefa (Lee Jae-min), and I was so bad that he told me to go to another lane and not get in the way of his farming. I think I’m doing much better now.”
The Blitzcrank pick was also born of careful consideration, as GorillA explained that he knew Lee “Wolf” Jae-wan likes to use Lulu and that SKT seems to be rather weak against grabs. In the case that Thresh was banned out, GorillA said he prepared Blitzcrank as a surprise pick.
GorillA is the Korean innovator of surprise support picks, as he debuted support Miss Fortune in last year’s League of Legends World Championship against SKT and Kennen support in the LCK, both of which have since been utilized. On the chance of using another innovative pick, GorillA said the opportunities are sparse, but it’s still in the cards.
“There is a tendency even when you’re using a bad champion, if it’s new, it seems a lot stronger than it actually is,” he said. “I think a surprise pick might happen in the future.”