The League of Legends 2019 Summer Split is right around the corner, and Team SoloMid has announced what to expect from their roster. Both the LCS and TSM Academy lineups will be seeing changes, as announced on TSM’s website. Check out all the TSM roster changes.
LCS Summer Roster
Top: @TSMBrokenBlade
Jng: @TSM_Grig / @Akaadian
Mid: @Bjergsen
ADC: @LoLZven
Support: @Smoothie— TSM FTX (@TSM) May 26, 2019
Double jungle threat
Perhaps the biggest news in TSM’s update is the return of Jonathan “Grig” Armao to the active roster. TSM had planned for Grig to be the team’s starting jungler in 2019, before wrist pain limited his availability. This wrist pain meant physical therapy and time would sideline Grig until well enough to play and practice consistently. Because of Grig being sidelined due to injury, Matthew “Akaadian” Higginbotham was promoted to the starting jungle position.
When Grig was ready to return, TSM had already found that Akaadian fit into the LCS lineup quite well, and Grig took over the jungle position on TSM’s Academy team to finish the spring season. The news update states that both Grig and Akaadian will be starting for TSM in the summer season. The time leading up to their week 1 matchup will be spent learning how to best utilize both players.
Luckily for TSM, both players seem to be solid options going into the summer season. Akaadian secured three Player of the Game awards last split, the second most of TSM’s roster. But Grig dominated on TSM Academy, ending with a 12-3 overall record through playoffs. In those games, Grig totaled 49 kills, 24 deaths, and 114 assists.
New faces in Academy
With Grig departing to the LCS team, TSM Academy is looking for new talent that will help them repeat their Spring Academy championship. Mingyi “Spica” Lu will be joining the team as jungler, coming from Echo Fox Academy. While his performance wasn’t amazing on Echo Fox Academy, he has plenty of time to develop as a player, as he is currently finishing his senior year of high school.
The final addition to TSM’s lineups for the summer season is the solo queue sensation Johnson “Johnsun” Nguyen. Following an approved visa, Johnsun will join the TSM Academy team as AD carry. Johnsun has been a staple at the top of the NA ladder recently, and it will be exciting to follow whether his solo queue success will translate into pro play.
The 2019 summer season begins on June 1 and features a rematch of last season’s finals, with Team SoloMid facing Team Liquid in week 1. Stay tuned to Daily Esports for any information on TSM’s jungle situation going forward.
