SK Telecom T1 is actually considered one of the best teams in League of Legends. But the LoL gods seemed tired and mentally blocked. They were probably overthinking. An 18-year-old jungler brings the turnaround. With his naivety, Blossom seems to inspire the team around star mid-laner Faker.
eSports is a world of its own:
- 24-year-old Bengi is already a veteran, serving only as a mentor and coach for his team.
- His 21-year-old pupil Blank, who was supposed to replace him, is struggling, overthinking, and falling into a crisis due to fans’ criticism.
- And 18-year-old Blossom is the new star of League of Legends. An instinct player who avoids overthinking.
All three are or were junglers for SKT. The jungler in LoL is kind of a “free spirit.” While the other four team members take clear positions that they must occupy during the laning phase, the jungler can roam the battlefield, appear unexpectedly, exert pressure, and determine the course of a match.
The LoL heroes are tired – SK Telecom T1 in crisis after final defeat
For years, SK Telecom T1 was the dominant team in League of Legends. With star player Faker in the mid lane, who is considered the best LoL player of all time, and strong players in every position, the Koreans won title after title, the last one in 2016.
But recently, their dominance has shown cracks. This was partly due to Bengi, a legend in the jungle position, leaving the team in 2016.
His replacements Peanut and Blank have not been able to fully fill the gap in recent years. Thus, they lost the World Championship in 2017 against rivals Samsung Galaxy.
Overthinking and too much fan criticism block young pro players
After the defeat, they brought back former star jungler Bengi as coach. But the new season did not start well.
Peanut (20) has left SKT. Blank (21) became the face of the crisis in the jungler position. In a match against Afreeca Freecs in early February, SKT was humiliated. In a 38-minute match, jungler Blank only dealt 612 damage to other players. That’s unacceptable.
However, Blank had previously contributed with this great steal to secure the quarter-finals at the World Championships just a few months earlier.
But the times seemed over in 2018.
In earlier interviews, Blank’s problem becomes clear: The 21-year-old overthinks and places too much value on community feedback. When he plays poorly, the comments in Korean forums become more severe. This likely affected Blank so much that it blocked him. A problem that seems to plague some young LoL pros.
18-year-old instinct player brings the turnaround
But soon the only 18-year-old Park “Blossom” Beom-chan started as a jungler for SKT and that brought the turnaround. He was named MVP in his first pro match.
Since then, Blossom has shown excellent gameplay and strong variance with champions. He impresses with heroes like Jarvan IV and the more unusual pick Zac.
In contrast to the passive jungler Blank, who likely overthinks, Blossom is considered an aggressive instinct player.
Colleague Faker describes him as “naive and pure.” He plays without thinking, but instinctively knows when to initiate a fight. An important requirement for a successful jungler at the highest level.
The young Blossom loves this aggressive style. With Bengi, he now has a mentor who tells him to just play like in practice and not overthink. Blossom cites Ruler, the AD carry of Samsung Galaxy (now known as KSV eSports), as a role model. This is the star player of the team that took the World Championship title from SKT in November 2017.
Blossom seems to set a different tone at SK Telecom T1. While the other team members seem rather introverted, they jokingly complain about Blossom: He just talks. All the time.
Apparently, SK Telecom T1 needed someone like him.
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