Welcome back to another offseason moves recap! Things are starting to settle in as we draw closer to the 2017 LCS start date, and teams are beginning to take shape. We’ll also get our first look at some of the competitors at IEM Gyeonggi, which starts today.
North American LCS
Team Liquid: The rumors are true – Kim “Reignover” Yeu-jin has signed on with Liquid as their new jungler. The move is a big one, as it potentially lands Liquid with one of the best junglers in the region. On top of that, Chae “Piglet” Gwang-jin has re-signed with the organization, allowing them to keep their top-class marksman player. While Kim “FeniX” Jae-hun has left for greener pastures, Team Liquid has certainly gotten the better end of the deal.
Immortals: Despite having lost almost all of their team, IMT has recovered surprisingly well. Replacing Heo “Huni” Seung-hoon in the top lane is none other than the legendary Lee “Flame” Ho-jong, which gives Immortals arguably the best toplane in the NA LCS. They’ve also acquired Li “Cody” Yu Sun and Kim “Olleh” Joo-sung to fill in the botlane, giving them a decent roster to field at IEM Gyeonggi. They may not be as good as the previous IMT squad, but they’ll certainly be contenders.
Phoenix1: Of course, the biggest story of this week was Phoenix1’s massive roster overhaul. They’ve managed to acquire Yoo “Ryu” Sang-wook for their midlane, alongside KT Rolster’s former ADC player, Noh “Arrow” Dong-hyeon, and Immortal’s Adrian “Adrian” Ma. With Derek “zig” Shao and Rami “Inori” Charagh rounding out the roster, P1 looks to be a prime contender for the 2016 Spring Split.
Team Dignitas: On top of the rebranding of the team, Dig’s made some pretty nice pickups this week. Kim “Ssumday” Chan-ho of KT Rolster and Lee “Chaster” Sang-hyun of Longzhu have both inked deals with the revitalized Dignitas, handing them a fairly strong roster.
European LCS
H2K: With both Konstantinos "FORG1VEN" Tzortziou and Aleš "Freeze" Kn?žínek leaving the roster last week, H2K were in a bit of a bind in the ADC department. Fortunately, they seemed to have solved the issue by importing Sin “Nuclear” Jeong-hyeon and Choi “Chei” Sun-ho to fill out the botlane. Oskar “VandeR” Bogdan meanwhile has been moved to a substitute position to accommodate Chei’s acquisition. While both of their new players have seen professional play before, it will be interesting to watch how they adapt to the European meta.
Unicorns of Love: The UOL roster hasn’t changed all too much since the end of the season, but it’s worth noting that the organization has brought on a new jungler to replace Kang “Move” Min-su. Filling in for the veteran jungler will be Andrei “Xerxe” Dragomir, a relative unknown from Romania. It will be interesting to see how the roster handles the new jungler in the coming season.
