The greatest moments in esports are memorable because of clutch decisions made by the top players in the world. These moments propelled them to legendary status, but more often than not, most viewers overlook the players who made it all possible.
Six unsung heroes in esports
While players like Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok and Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyljev are well-known and widely considered the best in their respective esport, the players who helped them get there tend to fly under the radar. The best carry player is only as good as their supporting cast, so here are six of the best players that enabled the champions to take it all.
Mata (League of Legends)
Cho “Mata” Se-hyeong is a legend in the League of Legends pro scene that has made his presence felt on a variety of teams over the years. His contribution to the LoL pro scene cannot be understated, enabling players like Heo “PawN“ Won-seok and Bae “dade” Eo-jin reach the top. Mata’s gameplay also defined the playmaking roamer playstyle for years to come.
Mata has a ton of his own achievements as well, especially on his signature Thresh with a 70% career winrate on the champion. He was an integral part of Samsung White’s victory in the 2014 World Championship, widely considered the team’s most dominating World Championship run of all time. Mata was crowned the MVP of the tournament after his outstanding performance.
Currently, Mata serves as the coach for Gen.G Esports, putting his knowledge of the game to good use by leading a new generation of LoL players to victory. Most viewers and players agree Mata is the best support player of all time.
UNiVeRsE (Dota 2)
Saahil “UNiVeRsE” Arora is the man behind what is now dubbed “The six million dollar Echo Slam” moment. Every Dota 2 fan remembers Evil Geniuses’ momentous win against the strongest iteration of the Chinese juggernaut CDEC Gaming in 2015. It was a hotly-contested feud that lasted for four games in the best-of-five grand finals series.
The series finally reached an exciting finish where UNiVeRsE, on his signature Earthshaker, caught CDEC Gaming by surprise with a powerful Echo Slam. This marked the beginning of the end as EG snowballed the game from there, becoming the TI5 champions. This was just one of many memorable moments that UNiVeRsE treated his fans to.
After this event, UNiVeRsE stayed on in EG for the next year before disbanding in 2017 and moving to the SEA region. After that, UNiVeRsE played in smaller-tier tournaments until his eventual retirement in 2020, going down as one of the best players at his peak.
olofmeister (Counter-Strike)
With players like Marcelo “Coldzera” David and Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyljev dominating the professional Counter-Strike scene over the last decade, others tend to be overshadowed. One of the best players to ever grace the professional CS:GO scene is Olof “olofmeister” Kajbjer Gustaffson, known for his versatile and unpredictable playstyle.
olofmeister was a true master of his craft, able to handle any type of weapon and play any role. At the peak of his career, olofmeister led Team Fnatic to five consecutive tournament wins in 2015. His disruptive playstyle then evolved further, keeping enemies on their toes. This allowed the rest of his team, FaZe Clan, to show off their prowess from 2017 to 2022.
olofmeister was a mainstay of the Counter-Strike scene until he switched to the inactive roster in 2022, taking a break from the professional scene. His contributions to Fnatic and FaZe Clan cannot be understated and his plays are studied by professional players today.
Sacy (VALORANT)
VALORANT has had some outstanding players over the years. Between Tyson “TenZ” Ngo being recognized as the face of VALORANT esports and Zachary “zekken” Patrone being considered the best player in 2024, other players on the scene tend to feel underappreciated. One of these talented players is Sentinels’ own Gustavo “Sacy” Rossi.
While his teammates bring the heat, Sacy makes sure to set up fights on his signature Skye, Gekko, and Fade. His proficiency with initiators has led multiple teams to take first place including Team Vikings in 2021 and LOUD in 2022. Sacy brought that experience to Sentinels in Oct 2022, redefining the team alongside TenZ and zekken.
Sacy was always an integral part of Sentinels’ victories from that point forward, with the team maintaining top form since the end of November 2023. Sentinels won three major tournaments since then, and it looks like there’s no stopping the momentum train.
Reps (Apex Legends)
The Apex Legends professional scene has only grown throughout the years, giving us top players like Evan “Verhurlst” Verhulst and Philip “ImperialHal” Dosen. With these two making a name for TSM, the third member of their active roster, Jordan “Reps” Wolfe, sometimes gets overlooked despite his reputation as one of the most successful Apex Legends players.
Reps joined TSM alongside ImperialHal and the duo quickly rose to prominence, leading TSM to a first-place victory in two major tournaments in 2019 and one in 2020. With the addition of Verhulst in 2021, the team felt complete, winning several tournaments in 2022 and 2023. Viewers started to take notice of Reps’ prowess as TSM won the ALGS 2023 World Championships.
Reps is also one of the top Bangalore players, utilizing that legend to its utmost potential. His versatility and unique playstyle continues to improve, showcasing several impressive plays as time goes on.
Wolf (League of Legends)
Lee “Wolf” Jae-wan is one of the most dominant players in League of Legends. He is known for his aggressive bot lane performances, especially during his stint with fellow player Bae “Bang” Jun-sik for two consecutive seasons in the LCK. His aggressive playstyle is further amplified by his mastery of Alistar, holding a career winrate of over 75% on the champion.
Apart from Alistar, Wolf is known for his mastery over champions like Bard, Braum, and Thresh. He specializes in the support role with a focus on enchanter champions, enabling his team to output massive damage in teamfights while he empowers them. Wolf’s playstyle has led SK Telecom T1 to five LCK championships, including two back-to-back championship wins.
Wolf is currently enjoying his well-deserved retirement from the LoL esports scene. He announced his departure from esports in November 2019 after his final run as the support player for SuperMassive esports.
