If you look at which coach has the greatest influence on today’s professional scene in LoL, you will come across Kim “cvMax” Dae-ho (34). In 2017 and 2018 he recognized the talent of five players who are now among the absolute elite in League of Legends and shaped their style of play. But cvMax hasn’t become a great coach himself.
Which players did cvMax discover and shape? In 2017, the coach cvMax was able to convince the manager of the second division team Griffin to give him a chance as a coach. During his time at Griffin in 2017 and 2018, cvMax discovered or formed:
Jungler Tarzan (25) had already been with Griffin for a short time in 2017 when cvMax came. So the coach could only shape him. Tarzan is now considered an exceptional player in his position, was elected to an All-Pro team in China four times and was the leading jungler in South Korea twice.
Viper (24) is now one of the best ADCs in the world, CVmax brought him to Griffin in 2017 and gave him a first professional contract. Viper has made it to an all-star team in South Korea or China 7 times.
Lehends (25) brought cvMax from a lower-class club. Supporter Lehends is now considered one of the best players in his role. His departure will likely hurt Gen G. 2025.
Chovy (23, cover photo) joined Griffin in 2018. He is currently considered the strongest player in the world. Chovy was the first pro in LoL to reach a KDA of 100 when he was 44/1/60 after a win against T1 in 2019. Chovy was elected MvP in the LCK three times.
Topplaner Doran (24) joined Griffin in 2018 and will now replace Zeus on the topplane at World Champion T1. He also has 5 selections to an All-Pro team.
cvMax has discovered or formed players in all 5 positions who are probably among the top 5 in their positions worldwide today.
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Who else did he discover?? In addition to these 5 players, cvMax has also absurdly played a role in scouting or signing T1 superstar support Keria and jungler Kanavi, who he had on his radar in 2019.
Coach choked Toplaner, who he thought was untalented
What’s the problem? cvMax is obviously a difficult person despite having such a good eye for talent. On the one hand, players rave about him, praise him highly and would do anything for him.
On the other hand, he was involved in one of League of Legends’ biggest scandals when it was revealed that he choked his top plane Sword. cvMax supposedly thought Sword had no talent and wanted Doran to play.
Sword sued his coach for assault. He accused the coach of grabbing him by the collar and shaking him. He pinched him. And he insulted him as “motherless,” a terrible insult in South Korea.
cvMax was originally banned for life by Riot Games for this strangling, but the protest from South Korean fans was so strong that Riot only released him again shortly afterwards: 200,000 fans didn’t think the allegations were that bad and apparently saw the blame more on Sword, who was more Needed motivation.
However, cvMax not only fell out with its players, but also with the management at Team Griffin, where apparently a lot had happened behind the scenes that did not comply with the regulations at all. Choking a player was apparently just the tip of the iceberg.
Team Griffin forcibly disbanded in 2019.
cvMax trained a mediocre team for two years and is now free again
How did things go for cvMadx later? The coach then continued to work in LoL and trained a rather insignificant team with the “Kwangdong Freecs”. In the LCK’s Summer Split, the team finished seventh and missed the playoffs.
cvMax’s contract ended here a few days ago. So it’s currently back on the market.
While his 5 protégés from his time with Team Griffin all now play for world-class teams, cvMax was not granted a great career. But perhaps that will change in the next few years.
How do you see the coach? cvMax is considered a celebrated but also controversial figure in South Korea. As one of the few star coaches in LoL, he has no history in e-sports, but in 2017 he was able to persuade a manager to hire him at a second division team in South Korea.
He led the Griffin team into the first league, demonstrated an incredible instinct for recognizing young talent, but ultimately ruined his chance of personal success through his uncontrolled nature: LoL: Gen G. beats T1 and becomes champion – with 3 players from a hyper-talented team that fell apart due to a scandal in 2019