Buzz
If both TheShy and Rookie join WBG, this could potentially endanger the team's aspirations for dominance.
On the afternoon of December 07 (Vietnam time), Invictus Gaming officially announced parting ways with their veteran top laner after over 4 seasons - TheShy. Thus, following the highs and lows with the white-robed squad, 'Top God' TheShy's departure seemed like an inevitable outcome beneficial for both him and the team.
According to some information from the LPL media, TheShy is '99% going to Weibo Gaming', meaning he will replace Bin to pair up with SofM in WBG's lineup next season. Furthermore, there's speculation that Rookie will also follow TheShy, forming LPL's strongest top lane: TheShy - SofM - Rookie, ready to contend for all titles.
However, if both of these deals come true, it's not certain that SofM and WBG would succeed. Firstly, WBG recently acquired Suning but didn't retain their head coach. Thus, at the top level, WBG currently lacks someone capable of managing TheShy and Rookie. With personalities like TheShy and Rookie, convincing them without quality, experienced coaches will be difficult. Remember, TheShy at IG was seen as unprofessional, often indulging in alcohol parties because no one could 'manage' this star.
Next is the team composition. In the current WBG, SofM is undoubtedly the 'big brother', both in terms of age, professional experience, and reputation in the LPL scene. And more importantly, SofM is already very familiar with Bin and Angel. For example, if only replacing Bin, SofM could still adapt. But this will certainly pose some difficulties because TheShy, in any case, requires a lot of resources for his playstyle. And this will make things quite challenging for SofM. Once TheShy starts struggling or being exploited, it will be very difficult to recover as too many resources have been invested in him.
However, TheShy could somewhat relieve SofM's burden since his champion pool is quite extensive, and as demonstrated in the 2021 LPL Summer Split, he can also play tanks well. But if Rookie joins as well, it will truly be perilous. In that scenario, while SofM can still step back to let his teammates shine, he will have to distribute resources among TheShy, Rookie, and Huanfeng. Not to mention, Rookie's playstyle will surely differ from Angel's, adding even more pressure on SofM, and ON and Huanfeng will have to adapt to two new key positions simultaneously.
Additionally, the harmony among personnel is also crucial. As mentioned earlier, TheShy is an individualistic player, and the whole WBG team, except perhaps ON, are individualistic players as well. With so many new elements, and as mentioned earlier, WBG lacks quality coaching staff, maintaining cohesion between old and new elements is very challenging. Once a group no longer shares a common goal, their chances of competing for titles are almost zero.
Furthermore, SofM, TheShy (and possibly Rookie, if he joins) are all imports. At the moment, it would be quite urgent for WBG to register as residents for any of these players, especially when in reality, they haven't shown fans that they've finalized any new players, as everything has only been rumors.
In conclusion, WBG might be able to recruit both TheShy and Rookie if they wish with their financial prowess. However, an all-star lineup doesn't always guarantee winning titles. Look at teams like EDward Gaming, Royal Never Give Up... they are teams with hardly any standout stars, but it's the cohesion, synergy, and mutual trust among players who have competed together for a long time that have led to championship success in the international tournaments they won in the 2021 season.
