Former Gen.G support Jo "CoreJJ" Yong-in will sign with Team Liquid, making his return to competing in the North American League of Legends Championship Series, sources close to the player and team told ESPN.
The 2017 world champion will replace Kim "Olleh" Joo-sung, whose year-long stint with Team Liquid came with friction between him and star AD carry Yiliang "Doublelift" Peng, sources said. CoreJJ's contract with Gen.G, who acquired the 2017 League of Legends World Champion Samsung Galaxy team, expired on Monday. Team Liquid declined comment when reached by ESPN, but confirmed the report on Twitter and Instagram.
The move is Liquid's second of the offseason, after they facilitated a buyout agreement with Cloud9 on Monday to acquire Nicolaj "Jensen" Jensen as their new starting mid laner. The team will now evaluate if they need to make further changes, although the remaining roster -- Doublelift, jungler Jake "Xmithie" Puchero and top laner Jung "Impact" Eon-yeong -- remains under contract for the 2019 season.
Since November 2015, CoreJJ has competed on Samsung and Gen.G in South Korea, both as an AD carry and a support player. CoreJJ first gained notable attention when he moved from his home in South Korea to North America in December 2014, as a part of former NA LCS Team Dignitas, where he played AD carry.
In 2016 and 2017, CoreJJ was a member of the Samsung Galaxy teams that became one of the best in the world. That team finished second in the 2016 League of Legends World Championship at Staples Center in Los Angeles, in October 2016, and the following year, went on to defeat SK Telecom T1 in a rematch to become the 2017 world champions at the Beijing National Stadium.
Team Liquid and Gen.G both had disappointing finishes in the 2018 League of Legends World Championship in October, failing to make it past the group stages of the event. Team Liquid failed to make it past South Korea's KT Rolster and China's EDward Gaming, finishing third in their group. Meanwhile, Gen.G finished last, behind the likes of Cloud9, Team Vitality and Royal Never Give Up.