Sorry LCS fans, but another North American League of Legends team has run into roster problems ahead of the 2022 LCS Lock In. Cloud9 strategic coach Max Waldo has confirmed that the team’s starting top laner Summit, AD carry Berserker, and head coach LS won’t be taking part in the tournament due to “immigration delays.”
Because these three members can’t travel to the U.S. yet, C9 is also keeping Winsome in South Korea so a majority of the team can use the rest of this month to practice together. In the meantime, C9’s starting lineup for the 2022 LCS Lock In tournament will temporarily include veteran top laner Darshan, superstar marksman Zven, and Academy support Isles. They’ll play alongside jungler Blaber and top laner turned mid laner Fudge, who are set to start for C9 when the regular season begins.
Waldo will also be assuming the role of head coach while LS is in Korea. But the two groups are sharing scrim information and video footage with each other, according to Waldo. The team in Korea will be scrimming against LCK squads, while the rest of the group in Los Angeles will continue to play against LCS rosters.
C9 isn’t the only team that’s suffered from travel issues early this year, though. Organizations like TSM, Golden Guardians, and Dignitas all have makeshift rosters for the Lock In tournament that are either their full Academy team or a hybrid of their main roster and Academy squad. This might not be the news that most LCS fans were looking for since many were excited to see the league’s new rosters in action for the first time this year.
But still, some huge names will make their debuts in the league on other teams, including Team Liquid’s collection of stars in Bwipo, Hans sama, and Bjergsen coming out of retirement. Evil Geniuses will be showcasing its new jungler Inspired, while rookie sensation Jojopyun is set to make his LCS debut.
You can catch all of these players in action when the LCS Lock In begins today at 4:30pm CT.
