TSM announced its full LCS roster and support staff today, and many fans are seeing some new names for the first time. Zhu “Keaiduo” Xiong is an LDL mid laner playing his first major split in competitive play, while Wong “Chawy” Xing-Lei is a PCS coach making his way to North America.
Keaiduo is a recent addition to League of Legends professional play, making his debut in the LDL 2021 spring split. With only a single year of professional play under their belt as a member of the ThunderTalk Gaming Young roster, Keaiduo’s addition as the center of TSM’s map may surprise some. ThunderTalk Gaming Young didn’t win either split of the LDL, but Keaiduo did catch some attention for his strong individual play.
In TSM’s announcement the organization said that Keaiduo had been dominating its month-long training combine in Korea. With the departure of a franchise player like Soren “Bjergsen” Bjerg, TSM’s pivot to a minor region rookie talent is a fresh new direction for the team.
Chawy is an ex-League of Legends pro player now turned coach. Fans might recognize the name from his appearance at the 2016 and 2017 World Championship events as a member of AHQ Esports Club, and again at Worlds 2019 as a member of Hong Kong Attitude.
Chawy returned to Hong Kong Attitude in 2021 as a coach before making the jump to TSM. Chawy’s addition to the roster shows TSM’s new commitment to pulling from less established regions for potential top-tier talents in the making. Chawy’s long proved himself as a capable strategic mind when it comes to League of Legends, and brings a fan favorite Worlds underdog to the LCS.
TSM’s new roster looks to a fresh take for the organization and a new way of cultivating talent. Fans will get their first look at this roster in January when the LCS Lock In tournament begins. Fans wanting to know more about Chawy can watch the short documentary that TSM put together on him.
Wei “Shenyi” Zi-Jei is a Chinese support from the LPL formerly of FunPlus Phoenix and FunPlus Blaze. TSM is clearly looking to the east to cultivate talent with their new roster and makes for a potent bot lane with ex-Team Liquid AD carry Edward
“Tactical” Ra. While Shenyi made his name at FunPlus Phoenix, the 2022 LCS split will be his first time playing outside of China.
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