The five best players before the 2020 LoL World Championship

With the 2020 World Championship rapidly approaching, the global League of Legends community turns its attention to the exceptional talent converging in Shanghai. Every participating team has been finalized, creating the perfect opportunity to analyze the elite competitors who will define this prestigious tournament.

Focus intensifies on the major competitive regions and their representative organizations. This season, the LPL appears to field the most formidable rosters in professional League. However, they don’t stand alone—numerous teams from various leagues have generated significant momentum throughout their domestic campaigns and now prepare to seize the international stage at Worlds.

This comprehensive assessment identifies the premier performer in each competitive role, evaluating their regular season achievements and comprehensive influence on team success. Understanding these players’ strengths provides valuable insights for both casual viewers and aspiring competitors studying high-level gameplay.

Top Lane: Jang “Nuguri” Ha-gwon, DAMWON Gaming

Conventional wisdom often characterizes top lane as a relatively low-impact position within competitive League matches. These competitors typically operate in relative isolation until critical team engagements commence. Recent competitive evolution has challenged this perspective through the emergence of top laners capable of single-handedly securing victory for their teams. The quintessential example remains former world champion Kang “TheShy” Seung-lok from Invictus Gaming. Additional organizations, including LCS representative Team SoloMid, have shifted toward strategies emphasizing top lane empowerment, with TSM featuring Sergen “Broken Blade” Çelik as their primary carry threat.

Among all top lane participants at Worlds, Nuguri distinguishes himself from the competition with compelling justification. During the championship match of the 2020 LCK Summer Split, Nuguri playing Ornn successfully created zoning pressure against three opposing players near the river. This individual play enabled DAMWON to secure an objective, the game victory, and ultimately the championship title.

Nuguri consistently produced match-deciding performances throughout that finals series as DAMWON captured its inaugural LCK championship. Nuguri represents a transformative element for his organization, whether through commanding the laning phase or executing team engagements flawlessly. Throughout the summer season, Nuguri achieved the largest gold differential at 15 minutes with +1,053 gold. The competitor nearest to his performance was DAMWON’s jungler Kim “Canyon” Geon-bu recording +895.

During 2019, Kleptomancy served as Nuguri’s preferred rune selection, and he consistently advocated for its effectiveness whenever possible. Kleptomancy was eliminated from the game in season 10, though this hasn’t prevented Nuguri from accumulating substantial economic advantages.

Nuguri recently underwent emergency surgical procedure and continues recovery. The top laner plans to travel to Shanghai on September 18 to reunite with his teammates. DAMWON requires its star top performer operating at peak capacity if the organization hopes to achieve significant tournament progression at Worlds. For players seeking to improve their laning phase, our comprehensive Complete Guide offers valuable strategic principles applicable across competitive games.

Jungle: Seo “Kanavi” Jin-hyeok, JD Gaming

Kanavi generated significant media attention during 2019 due to involvement in a complex contractual dispute between JD Gaming and Griffin. The Korean esports organization compelled him to execute an unfavorable five-year agreement, potentially compromising his professional competitive future. When contractual specifics became public knowledge, the LCK and all other major leagues needed to reassess their contract formulation processes. Despite these complications, Kanavi progressed to JD Gaming and guided the organization toward successful 2020 campaign.

JD Gaming secured the 2020 LPL Spring Split championship and concluded the summer season in second position. These accomplishments derive substantially from Kanavi and his jungle performance excellence. Kanavi is recognized as the premier jungler within the LPL, representing a significant accomplishment considering the caliber of jungle specialists competing in the league.

Within Kanavi and JD Gaming’s system, strategic execution doesn’t always follow conventional patterns. On this specific roster configuration, the dynamic reverses traditional jungle-lane relationships. The team coordinates to safeguard and empower Kanavi, providing whatever resources he requires. Kanavi’s jungle execution remains unparalleled, and opposing teams frequently struggle to monitor his positioning effectively. If superior jungle performance consistently determines match outcomes, then JD Gaming appears destined for substantial tournament advancement.

Mid lane: Zhuo “knight” Ding, Top Esports

Every individual monitoring LPL competitions recognizes Knight’s identity—the dominant mid lane presence that has commanded the league throughout recent splits. International enthusiasts possess less familiarity with Knight and his mid lane capabilities because Knight hadn’t previously qualified for Worlds competition. 2019 appeared positioned as Knight and Top Esports’ breakthrough year, though that aspiration concluded prematurely.

TES and Knight refused to permit another competitive year without international representation. During 2020, the mid lane specialist prepares to demonstrate his capabilities before the year’s largest viewership audience. The summer split champion and seasonal MVP has competed within the LPL since 2017. Knight’s professional tenure spans relatively brief duration, though he currently establishes the benchmark for mid laners globally.

Consider the world’s most accomplished mid lane competitor, and everything within their capabilities. Then acknowledge that Knight probably executes these actions more effectively. Knight can coordinate roams, dominate lane phase, function as supportive mid, or perform as primary carry. With extensive champion selection options and exceptional mechanical proficiency, Knight represents an adaptable player who might dominate the 2020 World Championship. Understanding champion versatility proves crucial for competitive success, as detailed in our Class Guide covering strategic role selection.

ADC: Yu “JackeyLove” Wen-Bo, Top Esports

The acquisition of former world champion JackeyLove fundamentally transformed Top Esports’ competitive trajectory. What originated as a competent roster developed into an overwhelming competitive force. Due to JackeyLove’s roster addition, TES attained first position during regular season and captured the summer championship title.

During 2018, when JackeyLove secured Worlds victory with IG, he was perceived as somewhat unproven. JackeyLove’s competitive inexperience manifested during stage performances, and he frequently committed errors. The subsequent competitive year, JackeyLove emerged as a transformed competitor. It appeared that achieving Worlds championship propelled his development into a seasoned and dependable team member.

From mechanical execution perspective, JackeyLove ranks among the world’s premier ADC specialists. Typically, ADC players remain content positioning behind teammates and attacking from secure distances. JackeyLove diverges from this approach, as he will aggressively engage combat situations and won’t delay flashing forward to guarantee eliminations. This aggressive methodology provides refreshing viewing experience while surprising opposition teams. JackeyLove and Knight unquestionably represent one of the primary duos to monitor throughout the tournament. Mastering weapon mechanics remains essential for competitive ADC performance, as explored in our Weapons Unlock guide covering equipment optimization.

Support: Jo “CoreJJ” Yong-in, Team Liquid

Team Liquid demonstrates no hesitation investing whatever financial resources prove necessary to assemble championship-caliber rosters. Each successive split, the organization pursues premium talent acquisition from available market. Liquid maintains consistent domestic performance consequently, qualifying for Worlds across three consecutive years. Among the crucial components underlying organizational achievement stands CoreJJ.

CoreJJ requires no formal presentation. The 2017 world champion joined Liquid pursuing renewed competitive perspective. Thus far with Liquid, CoreJJ has secured two LCS championships, one Mid-Season Invitational finals appearance, and two Worlds qualifications.

When CoreJJ integrated into Team Liquid’s system, the team’s operational dynamics improved substantially. Because CoreJJ operates as roaming support specialist, the team identifies superior engagement opportunities across the map and executes more assertive strategies. Liquid hasn’t traditionally represented the organizational type that initiates frequent skirmishes, though with CoreJJ and jungler Mads “Broxah” Brock-Pedersen within lineup, the team aims to modify this approach. This assertive methodology originates from support-jungle partnership coordination and their synchronized map movement patterns. Numerous exceptional support competitors attend Worlds, though none has exerted equivalent influence on team performance as CoreJJ.

The League of Legends 2020 World Championship commences on September 25.

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