Mid laner Lee “Crown” Min-ho has joined Counter Logic Gaming for 2020, while the team also confirmed the return of top laner Kim “Ruin” Hyeong-min to the starting roster.
Crown is staying in the LCS. The mid laner was officially transferred from Immortals to CLG where he is taking over the mid lane. Crown will replace Tristan “PowerOfEvil” Schrage, who decided not to renew his contract with the team.
Crown joined the LCS after a disappointing 2018 with Gen.G Esports. That year, the team struggled domestically and barely made it to the World Championship. Gen.G was the first Korean team in history to be eliminated in the group stage. The team failed to defend its Worlds title and decided to part ways after.
So far, Crown hasn’t found the success he likely wanted outside of Korea. The accomplished mid laner joined OpTic Gaming, a lower-tier team with few if any real title aspirations. Crown was a big fish in a little pond, and as a former World Champion he was surrounded by players without any real accomplishments to their name.
In 2019, OpTic placed sixth or below in the LCS both splits. The organization also went through a series of internal issues that ultimately led them to sell their franchise slot in the LCS. OpTic ceased to exist completely in 2019, as the organization sold its teams across multiple titles and declared itself officially disbanded.
Immortals inherited OpTic’s contracts, including Crown’s. The organization has renewed its contract with head coach Thomas “Zaboutine” Si-Hassen and has seemingly let go of its former players. Immortals is looking to build a roster from scratch, and according to several reports the first recruit may be jungler Jake “Xmithie” Puchero, who recently parted ways with Team Liquid.
Despite being an All-American organization, CLG has proven to be a good home for Korean players. When it comes to the play style, Crown can expect lots of attention from jungler Raymond “Wiggily” Griffin, who is making a name for himself in the LCS.
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