On Jun. 7, the 2023 LCK Summer Split started off. The second match of the day was between Dplus KIA and Liiv SANDBOX. It was an easy win for Dplus KIA as they shut out Liiv SANDBOX 2-0. After the match, Dplus KIA head coach Choi “Acorn” Cheon-ju and Kim “Canyon” Geon-bu joined the media to answer questions regarding today’s game and the season.

You had a clean sweep. How do you feel?

Acorn: We had a shorter vacation compared to the other teams, and started practicing early. I’m happy that practice was worthwhile since we won today. I hope we can continue this flow to the end, and I really hope that we can be the ones smiling at the end of the season.

Canyon: Since it was the first match of the season, I was a bit nervous, but everyone did their roles well, and I’m happy that we won.

You were 1-1 against Liiv SANDBOX in the spring, and Teddy joined them. How did you prepare for the match?

Acorn: I believe Liiv SANDBOX is a strong team, and the addition of Teddy made them more solid. What we focused on the most were the bot lane champion tiers. The games went well, and I believe that started from our preparation.

Today’s match was quite one-sided. Can fans raise their expectations for the season?

Canyon: [Laughs] I’m not sure after only playing one match. We should maintain our performance while trying to improve our forms even more. When we play against the favorites is probably when we’ll find out.

In game 1, you picked Milio and passed the chance to pick the ADC to the second pick phase. What was the reason?

Acorn: We thought there were several partners for Milio, and Deft could play many different champions, so we were fine with picking the ADC in the second phase.

Many say that the summer season is also bot-centric. What are your thoughts?

Acorn: A bot-centric meta doesn’t mean that only the bot laner is important. All the other champions are important, and with Milio and Yuumi rising, drafts should be composed of champions that go along with them well.

You prepared Poppy as a counter for Jax. How was the process?

Acorn: Poppy’s W kind of counters champions that have moving skills. For today, Poppy was effective against Sejuani, Jax, and Jayce, and it can also aid much in protecting the bot laner. We prepared the pick as we prepared for the patch.

You said that you started practicing earlier for this season. How confident are you?

Acorn: What’s important is how good we can do from today on. We’re pretty confident about the summer season. With this flow, I think we’ll do quite well.

Canyon: Confidence… [Laughs] I really want to do well this summer. We didn’t do that well in the spring, so we don’t have many championship points. I'll try to play confidently even if I'm not as confident. 

You’ll be facing DRX. How do you think they are?

Acorn: We’ve scrimmed against them before, but not recently. They were stronger than I thought, so we won’t get careless and do what we can do well to win.

Canyon: They had a roster change, and they’re quite good. I’ll need to prepare well.