CS_Aggrivated

In light of the recent drama I feel compelled to share my perception (read: opinion) of Luka’s character. I make this statement not to stir up more controversy, but because my personal values, I do not want to look back in 5 years and regret not speaking up for one of my players. I first met Luka in the post-season of 2017 when I started coaching for G2. If I reflect on my time in the G2 gaming house, I recall those first impressions of him as “young”, “serious” and “really good at classical guitar.” At that time, sport psychology exercises were not as common or accepted within sports and esports as they are today, and many players did not commit hard enough to give them a chance. Luka, however, was willing to listen and give anything a shot at least once, if he thought it might improve his chance of success. He was the type of person who did things at 100% or 0%, there was no wishy-washiness in his decision making. So, he also tried everything I asked him to do, and if he secretly didn’t think it was worth it, I could never tell because his effort level was 100. Perhaps you can observe that this is a trait he still holds. Over my time with him and the team, I had a chance to observe him, teach him, be taught by him, and see his true character assert itself during high-stakes competitions. I would evaluate him as “cut from rare cloth”, in that he was willing to internalize hard personal truths about his weaknesses to pursue victory. When people say “I’d do anything to win” they usually do not mean it. In fact, I have only coached a couple of players that embodied this ideal and then proved it with their everyday actions, Luka being among them. Luka is compassionate. I just looked it up, and the original meaning when this word came to English was “a literal sharing or deep understanding of another’s suffering.” That’s why I chose this word, since Luka seemed to suffer when others were suffering. He would retreat to his room after dinner to play guitar and re-live the day’s scrimmages in his mind, and then emerge with an assortment of issues to review. Invariably they would not relate to the game specifically, but rather, to the way his team interacted with one another at moments in the game. The way they supported, or did not support, each other. His premise was that the right environment would make a bad play into the correct play, whereas poor synergy would turn even the best play into a failure. He would lay awake deep into the night, stressed about his teammates’ emotions, to the point where we would have nearly weekly “clear the air” sessions at the dining room table. I had to remind him personally not to lose himself within the team, and to strive also to find his own space and focus a bit on his own excellence. So that he didn’t sacrifice his career at the altar of other’s social and emotional needs. He struck me as a principled person. He preferred not to speak when gossip was circulating. (Noticeable because these were rare moments of silence, and Perkz “the gaming house player” was not often silent.) He spoke up for several friends during practice or meals when they were besmirched. He did not run over to unnamed-player’s computer with the bros to ogle at an esport hottie’s most recent post. He was diligent with his hobbies and habits. He did not spend his money on frivolous things, and he was generous with others. I still treasure and regularly use a backpack he gifted me (see picture). Luka also had an infectious laugh. Everybody who has lived with him probably knows his mirth and has been affected by it before. In fact, it was so common for him to laugh that it was most noticeable by its absence! If Luka was stressed and sad, it was like a cloud hanging over the room, since he (and Mithy) was responsible for most of the good moods that circled in the gaming house. These are my recollections of this man. Two days ago, I had a chance to read a twit-longer from Luka and it caught me up on the last few years of his life. I was happy to hear that he found a partner with the share of happiness that such a relationship can bring. In relation to Carlos, I also remember going through a similar transition as Luka. Although for me the relationship was only business, it was still a shock to me when Carlos started to display how obsessed he was with materialism and then divorced his wife. I’m not surprised by his belief on abortion, because it is shared by many millions of Catholics around the world. The way he phrases it is condemning, which I am sure hurt the feelings of many readers who have had personal experiences with abortion. It is surprising to me that G2 fired him for expressing his belief. I can only imagine they were planning to fire him anyway and jumped on this timing as a handy excuse. If you were personally hurt by Luka’s condemnation, I encourage you to reach out individually since the man I know him as would relish the chance to converse, clarify, apologize, and hear your story. I appreciate several things about his post. First of all, it’s not PR laden pseudo-truths aimed at saying nothing and pleasing a crowd. Secondly, it’s clearly not written with AI. It’s getting more and more rare nowadays to find public personas who are willing to put in the time and effort to craft stories with, and in, their own voice, and so every time I see it I appreciate it even if that person were unrelated to me. Thirdly, Luka presents to me a type of male role models I want to exist for my children’s sake, especially in comparison to the Andrew Tates and Trumps of the world. He displays transparency, conviction, regret, stays away from commenting on things he feels unqualified, and shares his faith. His business after esport was an earnest passion project in the service industry and not a brand-based cash grab, nor useless Chinese-manufactured merchandise, nor rug-pull coin. To end, I’d like to say I fully expect this statement to be weaponized by anti-fans of other personalities in LoL esports who made statements about Luka or abortion. That’s wrong. People should be able to share what they think without economic or political sanction. This statement is long enough, and further discussion can be had in the replies.