MAD Lions reportedly benching Reeker, looking to replace with Nisqy, Vetheo

The offseason has started in Europe and one of the first roster moves could include MAD Lions and its young mid laner Steven “Reeker” Chen.

According to a report by Jaxon, MAD Lions is looking to bench the German mid laner ahead of the 2022 LEC Summer Split. Reeker will reportedly be leaving the organization completely before the next split starts, as several teams have already shown interest in him. This leaves MAD Lions to explore options, with former Fnatic mid laner Yasin “Nisqy” Dinçer and current Misfits Vincent “Vetheo” Berrié mentioned for the role. 

Reeker would leave MAD Lions after just one split in the LEC, where he as a rookie showcased some solid performances but without much consistency. MAD Lions entered the split as the defending champion, but wasn’t able to defend it. With two new rookies on the roster, MAD Lions missed out on the playoffs with a seventh-place finish. 

What team will Reeker join for the summer split?

For Reeker, leaving MAD Lions could mean taking a step back in his career before potentially entering the LEC stage again in the future. According to the report by Jaxon, two teams from the Spanish LVP Superliga are already interested in signing the 20-year-old mid laner. The teams mentioned are KOI and Giants. 

If Nisqy ends up being signed by MAD Lions to replace Reeker, he would return to the LEC after not having played throughout spring. The last time Nisqy sat foot on Summoner’s Rift in a competitive game was with Fnatic during the 2021 World Championship, where he and the team got knocked out of the group stage after a disappointing performance. 

Looking over at Vetheo to replace, MAD Lions would be picking up the recently crowned 2022 LEC Spring MVP after an incredible individual performance throughout the split. Even though Vetheo didn’t make it deep into the playoffs, he was able to single-handedly carry Misfits in games and make a name for himself amongst the most talented individuals in the LEC.

If the rumors of Reeker leaving MAD Lions are proven true, it could turn out as the first of many roster swaps ahead of the next split.