Recently, the match between GAM Esports and Team Liquid ended with a surprising result. No one expected that the team that had given T1 a hard time in their opening Swiss round of the World Championship (Worlds) 2023 could suffer a humiliating defeat against a team deemed significantly weaker from the VCS region. In particular, if GAM had not made overly “greedy” bans and picks in game 2 and had played more cautiously, the match score could have easily been 2-0 in favor of the Vietnamese League of Legends representatives.
Of course, GAM’s overly “greedy” item bans without any tank champions were just one of many mistakes the VCS representative showed in the match against TL. SofM himself noted that GAM had many advantages when the opponent made even more mistakes. However, not all “fault-finding” comments about GAM are accurate. For instance, the renowned streamer and commentator LS faced severe backlash from the community when he commented on GAM’s item build.
Specifically, the male streamer remarked: “Why does GAM build so many magic resist items when TL’s damage is mixed, and Kai’Sa and Ahri have true damage?” To clarify his argument, the famous streamer pointed out the specific item builds of Xayah (Malmortius) and Wukong, who also built Malmortius while skipping Black Cleaver, whereas Kiaya’s K’Sante opted for Abyssal Mask.
However, in response to LS’s comments, many players pointed out: “Jax has magic damage based on his E, W, and ultimate skills. Sejuani also has magic damage on her Q, E, and R. This champion also builds Abyssal Mask for magic resist. Rakan also has magic damage, and Ahri similarly. Therefore, I think starting with magic resist and a little armor is not unreasonable.”
Nevertheless, some opinions suggested that Wukong (by Levi) and Xayah (by Slayder) building magic resist with Malmortius was indeed somewhat questionable. However, when already having the upper hand, it is necessary for VCS players to play carefully.
After all, GAM will have many lessons to learn after the match against TL. The opponent DK will undoubtedly be much more challenging, but at this point, it is not unreasonable to place trust in the VCS representative to continue surprising us.