With the Group Stage of LCK Spring 2024 nearing its conclusion, the tournament’s landscape is starting to take shape. Accordingly, the teams that have secured their spots in the playoffs include Gen.G, T1, HLE, KT, DK, and KDF. For Gen.G, two victories against DRX and BRO in the final week of the Group Stage have ensured their position at the top.
This means that Gen.G will have the privilege of choosing their opponent for the first match in the playoffs. With their high level of performance lately, especially defeating T1 in both matchups, selecting an opponent should not be a big deal for Gen.G. However, for Gen.G’s star Support, Lehends, this choice is a haunting memory.
“Last year I also finished first in the group stage when I was with KT. However, this time I won’t make the same mistake in choosing a team. Personally, I will discuss this thoroughly with Kiin in the near future,” Lehends shared after the victory against BRO.
Remember during the LCK Summer 2023, Lehends’ KT had an outstanding group stage and finished in first place. However, they made a puzzling decision to choose T1 as their opponent instead of HLE for their first match in the playoffs. As a result, KT subsequently lost to T1 twice, missing their chance to win the LCK Summer 2023 title.
Not stopping there, this defeat had a significant impact on the KT team and led to poor performances, resulting in an early exit from the 2023 World Championship. Many fans later believed that this defeat was a price KT had to pay for being overconfident and choosing T1 as their opponent. Perhaps this still haunts Lehends (last year’s Support for KT), which is why he appears quite cautious when asked about the upcoming opponent in the playoffs.
Fortunately for Lehends, T1 will not be among the opponents Gen.G has the right to choose from. The reason is that by simply defeating DRX (a team at the bottom of the standings), T1 will definitely secure second place in the group stage. Given the significant power difference, it is very unlikely for T1 to have an unfavorable result against DRX.
On Gen.G’s side, this team continues to show that they truly are the “boss” in the LCK region, having lost only 1 match in the previous Group Stage. Personally, Lehends will likely do his utmost to help Gen.G defeat T1 and claim another LCK title. Besides the achievement factor, this title would also help Lehends somewhat overcome the haunting defeat against T1 from the previous season.