On May 21, in the 2023 Mid-Season Invitational, JD Gaming crushed Bilibili Gaming 3-1 and rose the MSI trophy. Although the two teams gave and took a game in the first two games, JDG came strong in games 3 and 4, ending both games under 25 minutes. After the match, the members of JDG joined the media for a press conference.

(To Homme) Congrats on winning the championship. Many fans think the champion tier list split the light and dark for the LPL and LCK. What are your thoughts?

Homme: The LPL and LCK are both strong and both did well. I think the LPL did slightly better in terms of match-day conditions and preparation. For at least this MSI, LPL did a bit better, so we won.

(To Ruler) You won at least one of all major titles, but you’re still humble, saying that you’re not the best ADC in the world. What more do you want to accomplish?

Ruler: There still are many competitions that I will play in, so it’s too early to say that. Also, there are so many ADCs that are great in laning, so I can’t say I’m the best. I’d like to focus more on laning in the future.

(To Ruler) After the 2017 world championship, you maintained your form, but you weren’t able to win an international championship. During that time, did you believe that you were still a top-class player? If not, what kind of effort did you put in?

Ruler: I wasn’t sure about my strengths as a player, since I kept on getting eliminated in the quarters or semis. Still, I wanted to do the best I could with the tools I had. I think that wokred out well at this MSI.

(To Kanavi and Ruler) As the two seeds of LCK got eliminated, many eyes are on the Korean players of JDG. The Asian games will be held this year. If you’re called in to wear the national jersey, will you comply? Do you want to get picked?

Ruler: Personally, I do believe I’m one step closer to getting picked on the national team, but I also think it could be difficult because I play in the LPL. It would be an honor to get picked. I have sort of a trauma from the last Asian Games, and if I get picked this year, I want to wash that trauma away.

Kanavi: I’m aware there are more fans paying attention, but there’s still a lot of time until the Asian Games. I’m not sure if I could maintain my prowess until then, and since I play in the LPL, I’m not sure yet.

(To Kanavi) What’s different from JDG last year to JDG this year?

Kanavi: The mid and bot laners changed. Last year, I had to go in with my teammates altogether, having more of a carry role. This time, I was at the vanguard playing tanks. Many people said that I’m weaker when I play tank champions, but I’m happy that I proved that I’m good on tanks too. Also, I felt less pressure playing tank champions.

(To Homme) LPL summer will begin right away. How are you going to manage your players’ conditions?

Homme: My players worked so hard, so I want to give them a break for at least a few days. After the break, since they’re such good players, they’ll get team synergy back to normal in no time. We’ll gather before the season stars and work hard.

(To knight) You were awarded MVP for the finals. How do you feel? What do you think about your Jayce performance?

knight: Since we won the championship, I’m really happy. The reason I picked Jayce was that it has good mid-jungle synergy with Maokai.

(To 369) Bin had a great performance all MSI long. Did you know how to play against him?

369: I’m happy that I beat him and won the championship.

(To Homme) The draft in the finals was different from other games. Was it from precise calculation and preparation? Or was it improvision?

Homme: Well, the players performance is the most important. The draft was done with the players, so we prepared well. I do agree that Jayce was the winning pick today, and we discussed it through within the team.

(To Homme) JDG can become the first-ever team to grand slam. What obstacles do you have to overcome?

Homme: I always think my players are the best. If they keep up the good work, there is no reason we can’t.

(To knight) How did this MSI feel compared to the previous years? There were more bo5 brackets this time.

knight: First of all, I think Bo5 format is more tiring, because you have to play for a longer time. Also, in this format, there weren’t as many upsets compared to previous tournaments.

(To Missing) Going into the summer split as the spring split and MSI champions, what are you going to do with the playstyle? Are you going to play similarly or adapt the experience to change it?

Missing: We have played so many Bo5s in the whole journey, and we learned a lot. We’ll try our best in the summer and try hard to make it to the finals.

(To everyone but Ruler) Ruler has been at the top for several years. He has the trophy case to back it up now. He’s pretty humble about his achievements, but do you all think he’s the best ADC of all time?

369: I love Ruler. From my perspective, Ruler is the best ADC.

Missing: He did a perfect job. He deserves all the respect, and I hope he keeps winning more championships.

(To knight) You’ve been flawless on Jayce this series. What was the key to him being so efficient in your hands?

knight: I know Jayce as a champion very well. I’ve been playing him since I just became a pro player and even now. I know it well, so that’s probably why I played well on Jayce.

(To 369) How did you, as a team, keep calm? How did it feel to win game 1?

369: Since we had beaten BLG so many times, we didn’t feel too much pressure.

(To knight) Were you surprised that they allowed Jayce past the ban phase so many times?

knight: I expected that they might leave Jayce open for me, because my Ahri and Syndra are much stronger.

(To knight) Medic in the broadcast described this as the ‘knight show’. How does it feel to be singled out as a great player? What does it mean for you to win this title in London?

knight: It means that I can perform pretty good on the international stage. I hope I can keep working hard to perform better in the summer split and at Worlds.

(To Ruler) It appeared that LPL consistently had a teamfight gap. What is the edge that the LPL has over other regions?

Ruler: The LPL teams are really good at starting fights. As for the bot lane, they have consistent performance around teamfights, and I believe that’s where the edge comes from.