Worlds 2020 Group Stage Team Preview: DAMWON Gaming
By s. samek
We look at DAMWON Gaming, their path to Worlds 2020, and how they might fare in the group stage.
DAMWON Gaming made their Worlds debut in 2019 as the third seed from the LCK, reaching the quarter-finals after starting in the play-in stage and winning their group. Although they lost 3-1 to eventual runners-up G2 Esports, DAMWON firmly established themselves as one of the top eight League of Legends teams in the world.
Now, they’re looking to top that performance in the 2020 World Championship. They’ve been placed in Group B alongside JD Gaming and Rogue.
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The Season
During the 2020 Spring Split, DAMWON’s 9-9 regular season record was enough to see them qualify for the playoffs in fifth place. From there, they defeated KT Rolster but fell to DRX and finished fourth, receiving 30 championship points for their effort.
DAMWON turned a corner in the Summer Split and had an incredible 16-2 record during the regular season as well as a 34-5 game record. In the playoffs, they cleanly swept DRX aside to be crowned the 2020 LCK Summer Split champions and earn Korea’s first seed for the World Championship.
The Roster
Top Lane – Jang “Nuguri” Ha-gwon
Nuguri was one of the best players in the 2019 World Championship as he was a wizard on Vladimir showcasing some unique build paths. As a result, he’s one of the players to watch ahead of this tournament and was rated as the best top laner at Worlds in our ranking.
DAMWON’s top laner was awarded a place in the 2020 LCK Summer Split All-Pro first team with the second-most votes (186, only below teammate Canyon). Nuguri’s wide champion pool of over 11 unique Summer Split options could be the key to DAMWON’s progress at Worlds.
Jungle – Kim “Canyon” Geon-bu
Canyon also had a strong LCK Summer Split which earned him a place on the Summer Split All-Pro first team and second-place in our Worlds junglers ranking.
The jungler lead the line in the LCK in the most recent split, boasting an incredible 3 kills and 8.05 assists per game, amongst the highest averages in the league. With two strong solo lanes to work with, Canyon is set up for success in the 2020 World Championship.
Mid Lane – Heo “ShowMaker” Su
DAMWON’s dominance of the LCK All-Pro first team continued with ShowMaker earning the mid lane spot for his Summer Split performances. Not only that, but the mid laner was also awarded the MVP award for the split and has been ranked as the number one mid laner heading into the World Championship.
The standout statistic for ShowMaker is his remarkable 16 KDA through the Summer Split, by far the best in the league. This incredible stat was largely due to the mid laner dying 0.7 times per game on average which is mind-boggling for a league as competitive as the LCK.
AD Carry – Jang “Ghost” Yong-jun
Ghost has cemented his place in the DAMWON starting line-up after he was signed from SANDBOX Gaming ahead of the 2020 Spring Split. After an excellent split – in which he was named on the LCK All-Pro second team – Ghost has been rewarded with a Worlds debut with one of the favorite teams to win the tournament.
The marksman is the lowest rated DAMWON player heading into the World Championship having been ranked as the 14th best ADC in the tournament. That being said, his teammates are undoubtedly strong enough to give him the boost required to make a deep run in the tournament.
Support – Cho “BeryL” Geon-hee
BeryL had an excellent Summer Split and was rightfully praised for his performances and awarded a place on the LCK All-Pro first team. This led to him being ranked as the number one support in our Worlds ranking.
DAMWON’s support had one of the largest champion pools in the LCK during the Summer Split with 11 different champions played including Sejuani and Wukong. However, BeryL’s most fearsome champion is definitely Pantheon with which he boasted an 8-1 record during the split.
Next. Rogue Worlds Preview. dark
90/50/10 Predictions
90% odds that… DAMWON Gaming at least match their 2019 Worlds performance.
DAMWON’s Worlds debut was a huge success as they reached the quarter-finals and established themselves as one of the best teams in League of Legends. This year, they are set to at least match that feat.
Group B poses little threat to their aspirations with JD Gaming and Rogue battling it out for the second qualification place. Then, they’ll face off against a much stronger side in the quarter-final but should be capable of taking down any second-place group team.
50% odds that… DAMWON Gaming break the meta.
As stated earlier, BeryL is no stranger to off-meta champions, nor is top laner Nuguri. It would come as no surprise if DAMWON are the first team to offer some experimentation and drastically change the Worlds meta, especially if they have wrapped up Group B early on.
10% odds that… DAMWON Gaming win the 2020 World Championship.
According to bookmakers, DAMWON Gaming are the second favorites to win the World Championship having been crowned the LCK champions in the Summer Split. Their star-studded roster and favorable draw put them in an excellent position to reach the latter stages of the tournament.
Once in the semi-final, DAMWON will have to take down one of G2 Esports, JD Gaming, or Top Esports which will be a huge challenge, but one they are more than up to taking on.