T1 Keria picked Lee Sin support for the first time in over 2700 days

A very unusual pick occurred in the LCK today after T1 support Ryu “Keria” Min-seok picked Lee Sin against Liiv SANDBOX. 

Lee Sin as a support is a very rare sight in competitive play. In fact, it has been 2718 days since the last time Lee Sin was picked as support. The last player to do so was the legendary Korean support Cho “Mata” Se-hyeong when he played for Samsung White over seven years ago. Back then, Mata beat NaJin White Shield and Kang “GorillA” Beom-hyun on the pick. A long wait later, Keria has now been the next player to pull it out and might not be the last one in 2021. 

Keria and T1 lose to Liiv SANDBOX with Lee Sin support

With Lee Sin locked in on the support position paired up with Senna, it looked like a game where T1 would impress everyone. Right from the start, Keria had a big impact on the Lee Sin pick and got two kills fairly early on. As the teams exited the laning phase, it all came down to execution in team fights and objective control. 

For a long time, it looked like T1 would secure the victory but greed came in their way.

After an ace and a Baron, T1 pushed down Liiv SANDBIOX’s base and only had the nexus standing. Instead of playing it safe, Keria and the rest of T1 engaged in an overeager fight and suddenly Liiv SANDBOX was back in it. The lost fight led to Liiv SANDBOX getting the Ocean Soul and miraculously grinding its way back into the game. 

At last, Keria couldn’t find the right picks on Lee Sin in the fights. This led to Liiv SANDBOX steamrolling the last fight with its beefy composition with Gnar, Udyr, Sett, and Gragas as the front line. In the back was bot laner Lee “Prince” Chae-hwan on Ezreal to dish out all damage necessary. 

The unexpected loss in game one affected T1 in game two, where Liiv SANDBOX secured the last win in a clean fashion. This puts T1 on a 2-2 record while Liiv SANDBOX continues its winning streak. 

How to play Lee Sin support in LoL 

Even though Keria didn’t succeed with the Lee Sin support pick this time around, it’s definitely a pick that can make sense in certain team compositions.

In T1’s case, Lee Sin was likely picked as a support because of his current strong state. Furthermore, Lee Sin was paired up with Senna and could get all the farm because of that. The fasting Senna strategy has been popular for a long time, where she only farms the souls dropping from minions. This allows the support to get the farm and ultimately be a threat in the game. 

Lee Sin as a support needs room to become strong. Lee Sin is a playmaking champion that won’t provide a lot of utility or tankiness. Instead, Lee Sin is an incredible engager if played correctly. With the right combo, Lee Sin can flank a squishy target and instantly get a pick for his team. Pulling this off is easier said than done, which is why Lee Sin support has never really been a consistent pick. It requires a confident player and the right team to play around it. 

Lee Sin is currently very strong in both mid and top lane, which makes him a solid flex pick that could potentially pop up in the bot lane again.