AnDa is one of the newest talents the LCS has to offer and has been on the radar in North America for quite some time now. Flyquest is off to a relatively slow start without Korean mid laner, Fly, but AnDa’s jungle performances have still been a bright spot for the team.

Esports Heaven had the chance to talk with AnDa about his first split in the LCS.

So far, what’s the biggest difference between playing in Challenger Series and playing in LCS?

The biggest one would probably be playing on stage and having that LAN feelings. I think the practice regimen is a lot stricter and I’m expected to play a lot more after scrims.

Do you feel like pro gamers have a lot more expectations levied on them?

Yeah, but right now, I think people don’t have a great read on us. Our team expectations aren’t that high right now, but we want to do well for ourselves.

How do you feel about being the rookie jungler amongst a bunch of LCS veterans?

I’ve played vs most of them in scrims and I feel that as long as I can match those performances and not choke, it’s fine, so I’m playing pretty comfortably.

You originally played top lane, but switched to jungle. Were there any players you took a look at while learning the role?

Usually I watch Peanut, Haru, and Ambition, but before, when i was playing top, I duo’d with Contractz a lot. I liked his style and got rank one during those seasons so it was pretty fun. However, Peanut and Ambition are definitely the junglers I look up to the most.

What do you think they do well compared to other junglers?

I think Ambition controls his team really well, especially around baron. He will tell them when to get on when to get off when to turn. Peanut is known for his carry junglers like Lee Sin and Nidalee and I really like that style.

Are you trying to build your style out of these junglers?

Honestly, you want to have your own identity so I’m just picking up the good parts of watching other people play.

How different is playing jungle at a competitive level, as opposed to solo queue?

Its pretty different in NA. NA solo queue has a lot of skirmishes and there are very little fights for vision since everyone just goes red smite. Korean solo queue has a lot more teamfights and macro plays, like five-man bot dives. It occurs more frequently than in NA, so i guess you learn a lot more about being a jungler in Korean solo queue.

Did you practice in Korea during the offseason?

Yeah, we bootcamped in Korea for two weeks.

Do you think that was helpful to you?

I assume that it gave us a small headstart compared to other teams. Honestly it wasn’t the most helpful, but it was something at least.

I talked to Cody recently about the future of NA talent and he said that you and Stunt are really good. He even claimed that both of you could be number one in your respective roles. What do you think about the future of NA talent?

That’s kind of a biased answer from Cody because we’re good friends. I want to say NA talent is pretty good honestly. We are good and even the academy guys are looking pretty good. I think the biggest thing for NA talent is attitude. If they can keep a positive attitude and learn how to be a good teammate, they will improve eventually

What do you think about the academy system where every organization has a B team? Do you think it will be a good way to foster talent?

I think it’s not really all that optimal because there’s no incentive or anything but obviously it gives players a place to practice and improve not just as a player, but as a teammate. After all, that is what LCS teams are looking for.

What do you think about the utilization of them? Are you guys scrimming them?

Before we play our games, we do dry runs with them so it is kinda useful.

How has being a pro player matched your expectations so far?

I’ve been living in a team house for over two years. The lifestyle isn’t optimal because you’re playing from 10 to 15 hours a day, depending on how you feel. Honestly though, I like it, even if you don’t have a lot of time to do other things. I used to go to the gym a lot and recently i haven’t had the time to do that. Friends too, I haven’t had time for them either.

What is your big goal for the end of the split? It doesn’t have to be related to league.

Honestly, winning rookie the split is one thing, but since there are only two other rookies right now, it doesn’t mean a lot to me. I really want to get top 4 so I can play on a big stage for a 1st or 3rd place match. Oh, and Rapidstar told me that he really wants to go to MSI so maybe that too.

If you enjoyed this piece, follow the author on Twitter at @xGoomiho.

Images courtesy of LoLesports Flickr.