New York Excelsior support player Bang “JJoNak” Sung-hyeon has been named the Overwatch League’s first MVP.
JJoNak was awarded the title during the Overwatch League season one quarterfinal playoff matches on July 11. Over the course of Overwatch League’s first season, JJoNak redefined the support role, playing Zenyatta with tactical precision. And before the Overwatch League, he hadn’t played in a professional Overwatch match.
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He joined NYXL with few expectations, and has continuously proven to be a key asset for the team. JJoNak uses Zenyatta as a DPS-support hybrid—healing almost comes secondary to his outstanding damage output.
Overwatch League’s MVP was awarded based on fan vote combined with votes from Overwatch League casters, analysts, staff, and media. (Dot Esports contributed to the Overwatch League MVP vote.) Fan vote counted for 25 percent of the vote, with 75 percent added up from media and staff votes. Los Angeles Gladiators tank Baek “Fissure” Chan-Hyung took second place, while Philadelphia Fusion DPS Lee “Carpe” Jae-Hyeok earned enough votes for third place.
The Overwatch League’s regular season ended last month, but the postseason continues with the inaugural season playoffs. New York Excelsior remains in contention for the season one championship. With a bye in the first round, New York were automatically seeded into the semifinals.
New York will face a quarterfinals winner on July 18 and finish up their series on July 21. Beyond that, they’re hoping to make it to the Overwatch League grand finals scheduled for July 27 and 28 in Brooklyn, New York—their hometown turf.
