100 Thieves Ssumday, CodySun, Ryoma talk challenges, goals for summer

Olivia Richman Published 09/06/2020

100 Thieves surprised a lot of LCS viewers by placing third. But that wasn’t enough to keep the team happy.

Chan-ho “Ssumday” Kim, Li-Yu “Cody Sun” Sun, and Tommy “Ryoma” Lee all expressed disappointment in their LCS Spring Split performance when talking to WIN.gg. Looking forward to the Summer Split, all three players believe there will be further improvements ahead.

But the big question remains: Will they be able to take down Cloud9?

How do you feel about the outcome of the Spring Split?

Ssumday: We improved a lot during the season. I thought we deserved to be higher than where we ended up. So I was not satisfied.

Cody Sun: I think for the regular season, it was better than expected. We did manage to get third place, which is pretty good for us, considering that we were in the bottom of the standings in the beginning. With the momentum we had at the end of the Spring Split, I do think that we didn’t get to show ourselves entirely in playoffs. We could have possibly had a better showing then.

Ryoma: I was a bit down. I think we could have placed better and had a better ranking. But it was fine. It wasn’t the worst, but it still felt pretty bad. Hopefully it’s better this time.

What do you feel you personally needed to improve on to do better this season?

Ssumday: Probably just trying to do my best. I tried my best last season, but it wasn’t enough probably. I am trying to improve us as a team.

Cody Sun: For me, I was adapting to the new team in the Spring Split and helping with the direction of the team. I think we have a lot of that stuff in place. For Summer Split, I mostly want to make sure that we have a really solid 2v2 and that our macro game is still pretty consistent. Mostly, I want to make sure I can show an elite level of performance individually.

Ryoma: Just making sure I know what to do in most scenarios and that I’m comfortable. Making sure I can give back to my team.

Ssumday, you signed a new contract through 2022. Why do you think the team believes in you so much?

Ssumday: I’ve spent a lot of time on 100 Thieves. I trust them so they are giving trust back to me. I am looking forward to the synergy with me and my team.

Do you feel a new pressure to perform?

Ssumday: Not really. I just have pressure to do better every time. I just want to improve.

What teams do you think will see a big change in performance in the Summer Split?

Ssumday: I heard that there is many changes on other teams. I’m not sure if they will be positive or negative changes.

Ryoma: I don’t think the teams that made roster changes will see that much of a difference. TSM brought on Doublelift. I think they are willing to take that risk because they want to make it to Worlds. GGS has become more flexible by bringing on Damonte.

Cody Sun: I honestly am not entirely sure. I feel like usually with new splits, unless you kept the same roster, which many teams did. But with the patch changes, it’s hard to say yet who will end up being good or end up higher or lower in the standings.

I think the teams that is consistently at the top is C9. FlyQuest is still pretty chill, they’re solid still. Other than that, I feel us and the rest of the teams, it will be left up to who works harder and who has better teamwork.

Do you think you guys have what it takes to beat Cloud9 this time around?

Ssumday: I hope so. They are the best team in NA now, but there’s not a big gap between us and C9. We should try to catch up to them.

CodySun: I think that it depends on how hard we work. Towards the end of the split, if we are able to make playoffs and do all that, I think we will have a decent shot against C9.

Ryoma: They’re one of the better teams in the league. Last time it wasn’t close really. But I think we want to make it harder for C9 to beat us. We want to be a better team in general, a team that people don’t underestimate.

Do you see any other teams as a challenge this season?

Ssumday: The other teams weren’t too difficult to deal with.

Ryoma, FBI said that they are ready to take you guys down this time. Do you think Golden Guardians has a chance against 100 Thieves?

Ryoma: I think they are better than what people realize. They just have a lot of random issues they need to fix. It’s hard to say.

We’ll see when it comes around, but I’m not too worried.

Olivia Richman

About Olivia Richman

Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.

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