Sources - VALORANT: Lakia set to return to Gen.G Esports

After more than a year away from competition, Kim "Lakia" Jong-min is expected to return to competition with Gen.G, the last team he was with before his break, sources tell Sheep Esports. While the South Korean player had already returned to the team as a sixth player since the end of VCT Pacific Stage 2, this time he is expected to be a full member of the team for the upcoming year.

While Gen.G had announced a few days ago the end of the contract of several players including Lakia, the player should ultimately stay with the team, just like Kim"t3xture" Na-ra, whom the club had also thanked before reaching an agreement to extend her contract as previously reported by Sheep Esports. According to sources, Byeon “Munchkin” Sang-beom will likely not renew his contract with the South Korean organization.

Former Counter-Strike player, Lakia quickly established himself in Korea as one of the best players in his role. He joined Gen.G in 2024 and took part in the best season in the structure's history on VALORANT and also one of the greatest teams the game has ever seen. The team starts with a victory in the VCT Pacific Kickoff before being a finalist at the Masters Madrid and Stage 1 of VCT Pacific. They then win the Shanghai Masters and Stage 2 by showing ultra dominance. Their journey, however, ends prematurely at the Champions after a defeat against Sentinels, which eliminates them from the group stages.

During this season, Lakia's performances helped place Gen.G at the top of the competitions. He is even named initiator of the year in VCT Pacific. However, upon arriving at the Champions, his performance greatly declined, and he would have a very complicated tournament. During the BO3 against Sentinels (2-0) that would see his team eliminated, Lakia finishes with only nine kills in two maps.

His poor performances will see him replaced this year by Chae "yoman" Young-mun and then Ha "Ash" Hyun-cheol. But these changes will not pay off for Gen.G, who, even with a Stage 1 final and a third-place finish at the Esport World Cup, will not do better than last year. Gen.G does not win a title and does not even qualify for the VALORANT Champions. As the team rebuilds, a second chance given to Lakia might perhaps bring the team back to the heights it experienced with its best initiator.