TSM jungler Mingyi "Spica" Lu has been named the Honda Most Valuable Player for his performance in the 2021 League Championship Series Summer Split. Spica had the best split of his career thus far and led TSM to a 1st place finish in the 2021 regular season in which TSM won two of every three matches it played. 

Spica made it to the final four nominees alongside three other players on teams that finished in the top 4 of the 2021 LCS season. Evil Geniuses mid laner Daniele "Jiizuke" Di Mauro, 100 Thieves jungler Can "Closer" Çelik, and Cloud9 top laner Ibrahim "Fudge" Allami were also up for the award. 

TSM had established itself as a top 3 team throughout the first half of the 2021 LCS season. After a 3rd place finish in the LCS Lock-In, tying for 2nd place with Team Liquid in Spring Split, and finishing 3rd in the LCS Mid-Season Showdown, TSM thrived as Cloud9 and Team Liquid faltered in summer and surged to the top of the standings alongside 100 Thieves. Because of its 1st place finish, TSM was awarded a first-round bye in the LCS Championship. 

With only one best-of-five against an only recently revitalized Team Liquid, TSM looked poised to return to the League of Legends World Championship for the second season in a row. However, a surging TL was able to best TSM 3-1, and while TSM was able to defeat Immortals 3-1 in its first lower bracket match, a narrow 3-2 loss to Cloud9 saw the squad eliminated from Worlds 2021 qualification by a mere game.

Because of the way it ended, it is understandable for TSM's 2021 season to feel bittersweet, but Spica's growth in spring and success throughout the summer is a silver lining on the season and points towards a bright future for the TSM jungler. The Honda Most Valuable Player award was the second Spica has won for his play in the 2021 LCS Summer Split after he was named 1st All-Pro jungler.