When we think of League of Legends players with strong personalities and a lot to talk about, no one else comes to mind than Olleh. Olleh returned to North America this year after completing his mandatory military service, and with him came a major change to the LCS format.
As Olleh returned, so did best-of-threes, a format the League community has been clamoring for. This also pleased Olleh, who shared a rather graphic idea of best-of-ones compared to best-of-threes as he opened up to Online Esports on how the new format will benefit his Immortals squad and how new coach Inero is improving the team.
The reintroduction of best-of-threes has already positively impacted the players and community. Many co-streamers feel the NA league has had its spark reignited, with best-of-threes adding another layer of competitiveness. Olleh also preferred best-of-threes, especially after having previously played in this format in 2017.
“I think best-of-threes is better because for best-of-ones is like you went to the bathroom and you didn’t clean your shit,” he laughed. “That feeling you lost, but it doesn’t feel like you lost. With best-of-threes, you can actually tell who’s better.”
Comparing BO1s to taking a dump probably wasn’t on anyone’s preseason bingo card, but the response shows Olleh is passionate about returning to best-of-threes. And for good reason. At a minimum, you are playing the same number of games, but no team is realistically losing 2–0 every week. Going to BO3s is the perfect opportunity for Immortals to show their true colors with the extended format.
That feeling comes doubly so after Immortals were called “scrim gods” in the spring split; a formidable team in practice that couldn’t replicate their performances on stage.
The team consistently garnered leads in the early game but would falter in the mid-to-late game for one reason or another. Immortals being better than what their record suggested was echoed by Team Liquid’s head coach Spawn on the popular League podcast Hotline League. “Immortals is actually good,” the former shout caster told everyone.
Having BO3 series instead of a singular game could be the turning point for Immortals. In our interview with Olleh, he noted “language issues” as one of the core reasons for the poor performance. A lack of experience was another, he added. “I think [best-of-threes] benefits us because we lacked experience on stage in the Spring Split,” he explained.
Teams in esports are often not granted the luxury of time, though. Not every team meshes immediately, and this was the case with Immortals in the spring. “We needed to match our personality,” he added. “I think in spring split, we just tried to match each other. And I think now I can tell our teammates’ relationships are really good.”
Olleh returned to the LCS this year after serving in mandatory military service. With that much time spent away from the competitive scene, Olleh said his first split back would be different from how he can approach the game in Summer. “I came back in Spring and focused on my own job,” he said. “It’s like, as a support, what should I do better? But now I have room to do what I can for my team. If they are not doing their job, I can do their job and jump in to help them.”
With the team meshing well and everyone’s roles more solidified, a final piece to the puzzle still needed to be added. In came Inero, a no-nonsense coach whose main objective is getting the League roster on the same page and playing as a unit. On Inero, Olleh explained that he had already gone about helping the team. “The most impressive thing about Nick is he has really taught us how to talk to each other. I actually think at some point he is like our psychologist,” he laughed. “When our players have a weird conversation or are scared, he stops them and just tries to help them approach the conversation.”
Having a coach who clearly understands how he wants his team to play and will enforce that style on his players has pros and cons. This type of coaching can be risky because professional players can often be stuck in their ways and find it difficult to adapt to a new style. It’s much easier to remove a coach than remove five players after poor performances.
So far, it seems Immortals have taken well to Ineros’ coaching style and look poised to challenge North America’s top league in a big way. “He has a really clear direction of how we have to play, and how we have to draft. So, for example, today, I said, ‘I can play this champion, I can play that champion, and Nick just said, ‘Olleh, you are gonna play Nautilus,’ so I was like okay I am going to shut the fuck up [laughs],” Olleh said.
Although they have won one BO3, and many bottom teams have been dubbed “scrim gods” in the past, this is the first time in a few years there has been so much positivity around the Immortals organization from a player and management perspective.
It will take a while for the IMT fanbase to genuinely believe they have a shot at competing for the top honors. While the org finished in last place again in the 2024 Spring Split, it’s now correcting course and has drastically improved infrastructure to the point where even the number one team’s coach is sitting up and taking notice.
Immortals are currently 1-1 in the LCS Summer Split and continue their campaign against NRG this Thursday, June 27.
