In League of Legends, the most valuable player of the LPL was crowned in China: It is the 25-year-old South Korean Rookie. The poor man has been in the shadow of Faker for 9 years, but in 2022 he made a significant impact. He managed to lead the team “Victory Five” from the bottom of the league to the best position.
Who is Rookie?
- Rookie is a South Korean who has repeatedly been compared to “Faker,” the other great midlaner from South Korea. Rookie earned the nickname “Faker Junior” early on because he had strong mechanics and a large champion pool, just like Faker, who, at a young age, became a world champion three times.
- Rookie only played for one year, from 2013 to 2014, in his home country of South Korea. In 2014, the “great Korean Exodus” occurred: a new rule prohibited “second teams” from clubs in South Korea, and many talented young South Koreans moved to China to find new jobs. Alongside Rookie, Doinb also landed in the Chinese LoL league, LPL, and earned his meals there.
- Rookie was for years “the” face of Invictus Gaming and played there for 7 years. His most successful year was 2018: he won the world championship with Invictus Gaming, the first time a team from China won the LoL World Championship.
World Champion moves to the bottom of the table at 25
Why is he being named MVP right now? 2022 was the end of Rookie’s time at Invictus Gaming. He moved to Victory Five. The team is owned by the son of a Chinese multibillionaire.
Rookie’s new LoL team played a terrible round in summer 2021. They lost all 16 games and landed in the last place of LoL.
Clearly, this could not continue. The team practically replaced the entire roster:
- Rookie came from Invictus Gaming
- They also brought in Karsa (25), a strong jungler from Taiwan, who previously played at Top Esports
- Moreover, the rest of the team was replaced: In total, 6 new players joined Victory Five, and the coaches were newly brought in as well.
What followed was an amazing year for Victory Five: with a record of 14-2, they are in first place in the league. The reigning world champion Edward Gaming is only in second place with a record of 10-6.
And Rookie was clearly the most valuable and best player in the league. He achieved a KDA of 7.52, was named individual MVP 10 times, and played 15 different champions.
Even after 9 years in the league, “Faker Junior” still has the large champion pool and the mechanics that earned him his nickname.
Faker and Faker Junior play for the 2 currently strongest teams in the world
How could 2022 proceed? After many weak years, Faker is now back and has gathered a strong team around him:
- T1, Faker’s team, has become the strongest team in South Korea
- just as Rookie had an amazing season with Victory Five
The two old rivals could determine the international titles among themselves in 2022. Meanwhile, Faker has strong support:
LoL: A 19-year-old is the best player in Korea – Playing the most thankless role
