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Tian re-signs with Top Esports amidst wave of changes ahead of 2024 LPL season
Gao “Tian” Tian-Liang has re-signed with Chinese organization Top Esports (TES). The decorated Jungler will continue playing for TES for his third consecutive year, according to the official announcement. Moreover, following their announcement yesterday of the departure of Song “Rookie” Eui-jin, TES today announced their new Mid Laner for the 2024 LPL season. Lastly, Zhou “Despa1r” Li-Peng makes his move over from Oh My God to serve as the new Head Coach for TES in 2024.
Top Esports 2024 LPL Starting Lineup:
- Top Lane: Bai “369” Jia-Hao *(rumored but unconfirmed)
- Jungle: Gao “Tian” Tian-Liang
- Mid Lane: Lin “Creme” Jian
- AD Carry: Yu “JackeyLove” Wen-Bo *(likely but unconfirmed)
- Support: ?
- Head Coach: Zhou “Despa1r” Li-Peng
Tian Re-Signs with TES
Tian originally joined the organization in 2021, alongside Top Laner Huang “Wayward” Ren-Xing. The latter has yet to be confirmed to be continuing or leaving.
Tian is a 3-time Worlds attendee, who won his Worlds title in his first appearance (back in 2019 with FPX). Since then, he has made it back to Worlds twice, once in 2021, and once more in 2022. He has never returned to the Quarterfinals since his first run and victory. In 2019, he also received the honor of MVP for his performance in the Worlds Finals against G2.
Tian is considered an extremely strong Jungler and has put on a World class performance virtually since his debut in the LPL. Since his appearance on the LPL stage back in 2017 (under Suning), 2023 marks the first time since then that he has not won at least one of the regular LPL splits (since 2019). He has also made the LPL Playoffs every split during this period (2019-2023).
New Mid Laner Creme
Mid Laner Lin “Creme” Jian also bursts to the fore in the wake of Rookie’s departure. The 19-year-old laner has spent his career up until now under the Oh My God banner. He originally debuted under their sister team Oh My Dream, playing in the LDL. After that he spent 4 years serving as the Mid Laner for the main team.
Creme has generally been hyped up for his mechanics and is known for playing flashy champions such as Akali and Sylas. It will be particularly interesting to see how he fits into the TES roster, especially given the fact he will be filling the shoes of a player like Rookie.
Part and Parcel
New Mid Laner, new Head Coach, same team. Both Creme and Despa1r hail from Oh My God, creating a move that makes sense for TES. Pairing a greener Mid Laner with a coach that is familiar is an age-old technique that will likely serve the roster’s future well.
However, an additional spicy level is added to this move, when one realizes that Despa1r was also the coach for FunPlus Phoenix between 2018 and 2022, making him not just a Worlds winner, but also reunites him with recently re-signed Jungler Tian.
Conclusion
Top Esports is currently making multiple big moves to secure their future performance in the LPL. Whether or not it pays off, it is undoubtedly an exciting time to be a TES fan. The re-signing of Tian alone sparks plenty of hope for future TES runs. Then there is the interest for the new Mid Laner Creme to pair with the rumored return of top-side king 369. Finally, the signing of a veteran coach all coincides to create a powerhouse lineup that could certainly turn heads.
Credit: Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games
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