“Zinie is KT’s treasure. I don’t even know how to describe this player. That’s how good he is.” – LCK CL caster Sim Ji-soo, during 2024 LCK CL Summer P.O, KT vs T1, round 3.
As a three-peat LCK CL Champion and 2024 Asia Star Challengers Invitational (ASCI) champion, the 20 year-old mid laner Yoo “Zinie” Baek-jin quickly rose to stardom as the breakout prodigy. Right from his debut, many LCK CL insiders thought he was level above his competition, and his track record of being named MVP in both splits of his debut season proved that the hype behind him was real.
With the recent news of his departure from KT Challengers and his next destination rumored to be Shopify Rebellions in the LCS, here’s all you need to know about Zinie.
In Zinie’s debut season, due to similar champion pools and his hyper-aggressive playstyle that almost mimics KT Rolster’s Gwak “Bdd” Bo-seong, KT fans have dubbed him “Zdd” (Or “Babydd”). While Zinie’s playstyle eventually deviated from that of Bdd’s, he knew how to carry his team into victory with any champion from his incredibly wide champion pool.
He’s also known to develop signature picks like Bdd. He went 4-0 with Annie during the 2025 LCK CL Kickoff, when she was a champion that was played only 16 times in all leagues around the world. Zinie was named POG in all of his games with Annie, and it instantly became Zinie’s signature pick.
But the reason why he was most associated with Bdd was in his playmaking ability. Not only did he have a champion pool wide enough to allow his team comps to be flexible, but he was always the anchor for his team. His DPM (Damage Per Minute) in his matches was always off the charts, as he averaged around 850 DPM in the 2025 LCK CL season.
For Zinie, winning championships is in his blood. He was promoted to KT Challengers in 2024 after winning the LCK Academy Series 2023 2nd championship, and since his debut, he’s become a three-peat LCK CL champion, winning both splits in 2024 and LCK CL Kickoff in 2025.
In my 10-something years of casting League of Legends, I’ve never seen a match like this! Seriously, I’ve never watched anything like this! – LCK CL Commentator Kim Dong-joon, 2024 ASCI Finals
His name follows the list of coveted LCK rookies, such as Kim “Peyz” Su-hwan and Choi “Lucid” yong-hyuk, as the next hyped LCK prospect, so his next steps in his pro career will definitely be worth keeping an eye on. Whether that’s with Shopify Rebellion in the LCS or in any other league in the world, the caliber of the gameplay he provides to his team will certainly elevate them to higher heights.
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