Controversial but promising: Nongshim RedForce needs Diable to be the top team in the LCK

Although the LCK is in the middle of the season with Round 1-2 games, one of the most shocking moves happened at the end of the first round. Korean ADC player The name “Diable” Dae-geun officially joined Nongshim RedForce (NS), walking BNK FearX (BFX), a team that has made him one of the hottest prospects in the scene.

With this move, Nongshim may have found the missing piece to become a force that can eventually match the top teams in the league, KT Rolster and Hanwha Life Esports.

But is it all roses for the team? Not really…

To understand why Diable joined NS, we have to go back to April 28, when BFX announced through their social media account that the ADC player was demoted to the Challenger team (second stage) after failing to attend the scheduled fan meeting.

On April 26, BFX faced current world champions T1 during the final Homeground event, T1 beating BFX with a clean 2-0 record. The loss put BFX in a tricky position, with a 2-6 record and the bottom half of the standings. This was a big difference in the first half of the season, when the Korean team finished second in the LCK Cup and participated in the first international tournament of the 2026 calendar, First Stand.

It’s worth noting that BFX is a team based in Busan and has been building a following far away from Seoul, where most of the LCK organizations reside. The fan meet was a great opportunity for both local fans in Seoul and those visiting Busan to connect with the player, who was clearly seen as the star of the team.

During the interview with the head coach of BFX Park “Edo” Jun-seok, he said: “The biggest problem (with Diable) was the fan meeting, after discussing it between me, the coaching staff, the general manager and the CEO, we all agreed to send him to the CL (Challengers) list.” […] Even after we sent him down and issued a statement, there were still situations where his attitude was not good. I want to make it clear to you Diable that he should never act that way.”

Diable’s refusal to obey despite internal attempts to persuade him forced BFX to punish him, so he sent him to the second team. However, when they were seated on the bench, the situation quickly escalated.

Considering BFX’s recent drop in results and Diable’s contract expiring at the end of the season, the team didn’t want to risk losing their most valuable player for free. As a result, BFX tried to explore a trade deal with LCK team DN SOOPers (DNS), reportedly involving Challenger ADC Kwak “Enosh” Kyu-jun, who previously played with BFX in the second division.

On paper, it made sense. Enosh will join a familiar group, and BFX will also benefit financially from Diable’s transfer. However, this step did not happen. According to Daily Esports, Diable’s status as a minor requires his consent for the transfer to take place.

DNS is currently dead last in the LCK, with only one win on the scoreboard. The team’s poor results may have been the reason for Diable’s rejection.

Diable’s decision put BFX in a difficult situation, because if the team wants to transfer him in this window, it should have been done before the start of the second round, which sets the deadline of April 30.

The lack of time finally opened up a good opportunity for Nongshim RedForce, who are currently sitting in sixth place with a record of 4-5. Ultimately, Diable ended up accepting his transfer to NS, trading their former ADC, Kim “Taeyoon” Tae-yoon, to BFX.

Shortly after announcing the new player, NS also posted a handwritten apology letter from Diable on social media. With the second round robin starting soon, Diable will now have to prove his worth in the Rift to the new team.

No matter how you look at it, the addition of Diable to NS is an improvement. Diable is considered one of the best carry profiles in the league, having won against some of the best bot lanes in the world.

The player is known to be one of the most aggressive, willing to punish small mistakes in the laning phase. In comparison, Taeyoon was often considered the weak link in NS and showed more flexibility in his gameplay.

That said, replacing a player in the middle is never easy, especially for a team like NS, who are fighting for the playoffs.

The most important aspect of Diable will be the synergy with his new support, Son “Lehends” Si-woo. The former used his rise playing alongside Kim “Kellin” Hyeong-gyu and the two formed a strong bot lane partnership at BFX, to the point where they were considered one of the best bot laners in the world.