BDS roster looks cohesive for LEC Winter 2025

Last year was disappointing for Team BDS. Not only did they fail to qualify for an international event, but they also failed at the last step before the Grand Final for all three splits they played in the LEC. It was a disappointing year for a team that was a single game away from winning their first LEC title before being reversed swept by MAD Lions in Spring 2023.

For 2025, the team made a number of adjustments and rebuilt around their two star players, Ilias “nuc” Bizriken and Yoon “Ice” Sang-hoon. They have added two rookies to the equation, as well as a confirmed league toplaner. After regularly failing to overcome G2 Esports and Fnatic, the question is: Will this year be no exception, or will they finally manage to win a regional trophy?

LCK playstyle with an LPL type of Jungler?

I always enjoyed watching BDS last year, especially because of their playstyle. They were the team that was the closest to the LCK in the way they saw and played League. Slow-paced games where they gently took control of most objectives during the early and suddenly widened the Gold gap with a dazzling teamfight in the midgame. I think that comes from their head coach, Yanis “Striker” Kella, and his view of the way the game should be played. But in a region where most games are messy, that’s very surprising and reassuring to see such a game sense and discipline. I think the recruitment of Doğukan “113” Balcı also comes from the French coach, as he already managed him when they both worked for Karmine Corp in the LFL. His love for him seems unconditional because for me Théo “Sheo” Borile had proven his worth enough to stay one more year with BDS. While 113 is a bet, especially given the player’s tendency of either solo carrying or solo losing games with its well-known over-aggressiveness.

Still last year with Karmine Corp, he seemed to make a lot of progress in that regard, and it showed that he became much more mature as a player. To help him either invade the opponent’s jungle or find good skirmishes he will be accompanied by the best ERL support in those exercises.

Next to KC Caliste and G2’s Skewmond, Polat “Parus” Furkan is for me the last newcomer that is part of the trinity of the rookies that could set a new dynasty for the region starting in 2025. Given the current low level of support in the EMEA, I even expect the Turkish player to be one of the best in his role when the LEC kicks off. I just hope the gamble of Striker on 113 will pay off, or Parus could well look like a complete fraud by following his jungler through his inting journey. Whatever happens, the support’s talent no longer needs to be proven, he was even named MVP of the LFL in Spring and was for me the biggest revelation of 2024.

Check out: LEC Winter Split Tierlist

BDS needs to confirm they belong at the top

When it comes to nuc and Ice, both were undoubtedly in the top three of respectively midlaners and AD carrys in 2024. They now need to affirm they can stay up there by putting on such performances, or even push their boundaries even further for the second/third year in a row.

During last Season Finals, when it mattered the most, nuc had a particularly good showing despite his team failure to reach the podium. He was third of his role in average CS/Min (9.69), Gold/Min (426.13), DMG/Min (693.37) and DMG/Gold (1.57). Ice was even more impressive statistics-wise than his midlane counterpart, as he was among the two or three best ADCs in most of the areas all year long, and was even the first when it comes to Gold/Min over the course of the entire year (464.18).

Remember, Joel “Irrelevant” Scharoll was apparently the most desired toplaner in the league during the off-season. By locking him, BDS was even the first team to conclude their mercato for 2025.

But this move made a lot of noise, because that meant the team was parting ways with Adam “Adam” Maanane. To be honest, both toplaners are the complete opposites in my opinion. And I could see Adam trying to diversify his playstyle by playing more and more conventional champions during the course of the year. Yet, Irrelevant is undoubtedly the most consistent and reliable option there was on the market, especially when it comes to having meta champion pool, versatility to play either weakside or strongside, and finally fulfilling his toplaner role without committing too many mistakes or overplaying. To back up this point, his statistics for Summer 2024 are nearly all in the top 2 or 3 of the region’s toplaners, despite SK Gaming’s 6th place finish.