The TSM name used to strike fear into the hearts of League of Legends teams across North America. It might feel like a lifetime since we’ve seen the familiar black and white jerseys lift a trophy, but it’s only been three years.
And since then, they’ve only reached the LCS Finals once. The team was supposed to be one of the mainstays of NA and yet they’ve quickly become an afterthought over the past six seasons.
Over the past two offseasons, however, TSM has brought back two players who were instrumental in their successes—superstar AD carry Doublelift and his trusty support, Biofrost. Their bottom lane synergy was almost unbeatable in 2016 and 2017, and although their time together was cut short, they have another chance to realize their potential in 2020.
Will this reunited duo be able to lift TSM out of the shadows and onto the big stage at Worlds?
In 2017, TSM were on top of the North American League scene. Life was good if you were a fan—the team had just come off their third domestic title in a row and they hadn’t missed an LCS Finals in their entire history.
For Biofrost, things were looking good to start off his esports career, too. In his inaugural split, he and Doublelift took over the LCS with their great mechanical skills, instant synergy, and likeable personalities. These aspects are why the 23-year-old support is so excited to link up again with Doublelift this summer.
“I think we had a lot of success together when we first played, and just a lot of nostalgia as well with that because in my first split, Doublelift was my lane partner,” Biofrost said. “And even though we didn’t do well at Worlds, we had a lot of success domestically. So I do want to emulate that success again.”
Unfortunately, TSM never gave that duo another shot after their first season. After another failure at Worlds in 2017, they looked across the Atlantic for answers to their constant international woes by signing star European duo Zven and Mithy, while dropping Doublelift and Biofrost to free agency. It was a move that many fans now know sealed the organization’s fate for the next six seasons.
TSM has always managed to stick around in people’s minds, even after the departure of Doublelift and Biofrost. Season after season, people wondered if TSM could finally return to that untouchable status they had years ago—and yet every time, they would fail.
This time, however, they’ve gotten the familiar band back together to give hope to TSM fans again. Bjergsen is still in good form and Doublelift looks like he’s ready to have his best season yet. But Biofrost understands that this might be TSM’s last chance to prove that they’re still a team to look up to in NA.
TSM still needs some time to lock in, but they’ve managed to place a dream in the heads of all their fans for yet another split. It’ll take a ton of hard work to reach the pinnacle of the LCS, but there might not be another roster that’s as hungry for a championship.
