The League of Legends player nicknamed “god” showed why last night as Lee “Faker” Sang-hyoek led his team to the NiceGameTVegends Battle (NLB) Summer 2014 title. SK Telecom T1 K swept NaJin Black Sword in three straight maps, in large part to their dominant mid laner.
The defending world champions, SK Telecom T1 K has suffered through a disappointing 2014. But with the world championships on the horizon, the team and its star player, Lee, might be peaking at just the right time.
Lee’s signature play came early on the first map, when his Yasuo met in a one-on-one duo with opposing mid laner Lee “kurO” Seo-haeng’s Orianna.
Faker engaged with his Yasuo ultimate and kurO countered with his own, but both players mitigated the damage with summoner spell exhaust. The two traded damage, but when kurO dodged Faker’s powerful Steel Tempest, the Najin man had the advantage. But that wasn’t enough to stop the “god” of League.
Flashing away, Faker setup a perfect wind wall, blocking one potentially deadly auto attack before dashing back through it to block another and finish off the kill on kurO.
Full match videos should be available on the NiceGameTV YouTube channel eventually, but they already have a couple highlights.
Faker posted a 22/7/30 KDA line, including a ridiculous 11/2/10 as Yasuo in the first game, to lead his team to the title.
And that’s the story of how Faker is the best player in the world.
— MonteCristo (@ggCMonteCristo) August 9, 2014
NLB has a bit of a reputation as the “losers” league, considering only teams eliminated before the top four of the main OnGameNet (OGN) league compete at the event. But winning the tournament ranks SKT as the fifth best team in Korea at the moment—no small feat—and has even bigger implications for the squad.
The win is especially important considering circuit points, which determine the three Korean teams that advance to the World Championships hosted by Riot Games. Winning NLB earned SKT 75 points, which moves them into a tie with Samsung Galaxy White at 525 points. A tie-breaker between the two will decide which team advances to the World Championship and which has to compete in a Korean regional qualifier dubbed “The Gauntlet” to win the third and final spot.
If Faker continues to play this well, the world better be wary. SK Telecom T1 K will be back to defend their title.
