Why TSM Huni would be a great idea.

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I know that this post will be very controversial and will enrage fans of both TSM and Immortals but it needs to be said. Huni would be a perfect fit for TSM for the 2017 NA LCS. In this post, I’ll try to outline exactly why point by point.

#1 Immortals may be fracturing

Before the 2016 world championships, there was a lot of drama surrounding TL and IMT, specifically their rosters. Dardoch is gone from TL and there was speculation that Reignover is headed to Team Liquid. Also, with Fenix and Lourlo seemingly secure in their jobs, it's a good bet that, should the trade occur, Huni and Reignover will be separated for the first time since their arrival in the west. This is big because, for the last two years, the duo have been inseparable, even jumping regions together to start anew in NA.
Hopefully, the two are still on good terms and, if they do separate, there won't be too much tension. If this scenario does play out, it wouldn't surprise me that an ambitious player like Huni, who I’m sure was very disappointed at skipping worlds, would be open to new offers from top tier teams. And, surely the chance to play for TSM with Bjerg would be appealing.

#2 Huni matches up really well with the TSM lineup.

Let's say this trade does happen and Huni goes to play for TSM, how well will he fit in?
My answer is really, really well. Let’s go down the lineup:

JG: Svenskeren

Sven is a lot like Reignover. He plays very aggressive champions and loves to invade the enemy jungle. I've watched hundreds of Fnatic and Immortals games that went Huni's way because he was able to push out his lane on Rumble or Quinn and roam down river into the enemy jungle and apply pressure, take away buffs, and harass the enemy jungler. Both Huni and Sven are very good mechanically and love to "outplay".

Mid: Bjergsen

Who wouldn't synergize well with Bjerg? During the 2016 summer split, Bjerg showed us that he is willing to take the back seat and play a supportive role with Zilean. Pobelter provided this for Huni and it made him really successful, but... Febiven did more. Febiven on Fnatic provided a real carry threat and could also play assassins when needed. Bjerg now is a lot like 2015 Febiven in his champion pool and his aggressive shove-lane and roam style.

ADC: Doublelift

One of the main points of hype around Immortals, especially in spring, was Turtle. Over and over, the overly eager carry was unlocked by his team to go as "ham" as he wanted. So many times Turtle would go in, draw attention, and Huni would swoop in from the side and clean up. We also say this style, although with Bjerg playing the "swooping in role", from TSM and Doublelift in the summer split of 2016. Only difference? Double did it better. During summer, Doublelift had a 6.0 KDA to Turtle’s 4.6. While both got nearly identical amounts of kills, DL died 23 times less. Now sure he had a more dominant team, but the style would still fit really well with a top laner like Huni who could hard-carry a team fight where the ADC goes deep and maybe dies earlier than usual.

Support: Biofrost

This is the easiest synergy to see. Both Biofrost and Adrian are backline supports. Despite the single game on Alistar, Biofrost played almost exclusively Karma, Bard, and Nami. Aside from the Soraka, this is very similar to Adrian’s champion pool. If Huni, as he has shown, is always eager to go in and be the main or secondary engage, this is the perfect type of support that you want for this player.

#3 Huni has a more relevant champion pool than Hauntzer

Oh boy, here it is. His is where I piss off a bunch of TSM fans by suggesting that Hauntzer isn’t the best top laner ever. But let’s get real. He’s not. Both players are great in terms of CS in lane, don’t get me wrong, but the styles that they excel at are very different. Hauntzer’s play on TSM has been at its highest level when he is on sustain tanks. Maokai (TREESM), Swain, Poppy are all champions where Hauntzer looked to be the best in North America. Problem is, it isn’t always a tank meta. In fact, it hasn’t been a tank meta for a long time.
Worlds was a great example of TSM’s limitations from the top lane. While Hauntzer farmed up a storm, it’s clear that he didn’t have the same impact with Rumble or Kennen, and especially Jayce that he would have had in a tank top meta. For me, it’s still a headscratcher why they didn’t put him on Poppy any of the games. Anyways, could you imagine Huni, on a dominant team like TSM coming into worlds and playing in a Rumble, Kennen, Jayce meta? NA got robbed big time that this didn’t happen.
I want to make this absolutely clear: I don’t think TSM should drop Hauntzer. He is a fantastic tank-team fighter for TSM and in a Maokai/Swain/Poppy meta he would do better than Huni probably, but why not have both?

#4 TSM have an import slot open.

While I think it’s wonderful that TSM really tried to rock the world with no Korean player on their team, at this point it’s just wasting an opportunity. For the past two or so years, after the Korean exodus, the most successful Western teams in terms of international play, have been either: Origen, CLG, or have been strongly reinforced with Korean talent. For example, during TSM’s 2015 IEM Katowice win, Lustboy played out of his mind, and in many people’s opinion, deserved the MVP. During 2015 MSI and Worlds, Huni and Reignover were the spearhead for what was one of the best western teams of all time. During World’s 2016, Impact for C9 was a major contributor to their wins. Also, H2k’s Ryu has been eating his opponents alive during their run to the semifinals.
It has been proven guys, if you can successfully integrate a top Korean talent into a western team with good infrastructure and make all the pieces fit, great things are possible.

#5 Huni is the best “import” for any western team

This is a player who has spent the last two years in English speaking regions. He is well adjusted to the west and knows how to communicate. What other top Korean import (besides Reignover and Ryu) is this easy to plug into a North American team?
I’ve followed TSM for a long time and I know for a fact that Hauntzer is not the main voice for their shot-calling. Huni doesn’t need to be either. He knows the culture, he knows the players, and he knows how to play league very, very well.

#6 Huni is the last piece for TSM

TSM throughout the summer split was lauded as bringing all the pieces together by adding Biofrost to the roster. Over and over again I heard casters and analysts alike say: “They have carry threats from every lane.”
This illusion fell apart in the playoffs and at worlds for TSM. While the duo in the bot lane for TSM easily dismantled the weaker bot lanes during the regular split, in the playoffs they struggled, getting 2v2 killed by both the CLG and C9 bot lanes and never truly returning the favor. At worlds, the TSM bot lane struggled even more, even dying to weaker AD carries like Kobbe or Ruler.
Hauntzer also struggled in both tournaments. I was so shocked when Hauntzer got player of the series against CLG when all he had really done for most of the games was clear side waves, avoid a dive or two, and show up to do some damage for team fights. He also missed barrel chains. Often. And he got solo killed by Darshan and Impact. At worlds his Rumble and Kennen play was “ok” and his Jayce was strait up game-losing. Now I don’t mean to sound so harsh on Hauntzer, he is a very good top laner, but when you’re going against the likes of Looper or Cuvee, you need someone who will get in their face play phenomenally. Huni can do this. Huni has done this.
Unfortunately for TSM, with their side lanes struggling, the burden to carry fell once more to Bjergsen. This cannot happen again if TSM wants to be successful internationally. Adding Huni to the roster will ensure that there will ALWAYS be serious carry threats in at least two lanes. Maybe Hauntzer can improve his game, but, I really doubt that any team in the West can waste time hoping for native player to “do a Smeb” and become great in every aspect.
Huni is already great at the aggressive carry style. He fits well with an invading jungler like Svenskeren, he knows the culture, the language, and the playstyle. His champion pool is more relevant than ever and patches up the lack of carry threat from the TSM side lanes. That is why Huni would be perfect as the 6th man for the defending NA LCS Champions.

Please let me know what you think about TSM Huni for 2017.

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