u/hwanks

I came across a clip of cvMax talking about Kanavi during his Griffin days, and it's honestly a crazy story, especially now that Kanavi is playing for HLE.

According to cvMax, most aspiring pros would try out for multiple teams, like SKT, Griffin, and Afreeca. But Kanavi only tried out for Griffin.

When cvMax asked him why, Kanavi basically replied:

"Griffin is the number one team, right? And if I beat the number one team's jungler, that makes me number one, doesn't it?"

That jungler was Tarzan.

And the funniest part? Kanavi was apparently only around 400 LP at the time.

cvMax thought this kid was absolutely insane for saying something like that.

But then the story gets really dark.

During the Griffin controversy, Kanavi was accused of tampering. According to cvMax, Griffin's management wanted to use that accusation to permanently end Kanavi's professional career.

cvMax says Kanavi hadn't actually committed tampering.

He recalled Kanavi breaking down in tears, saying his life was ruined, that he didn't understand how things had ended up like this, and that he wanted to retire.

Think about that for a second.

The same kid who walked into Griffin with the confidence to challenge Tarzan, believing he could become the best jungler in Korea, was now crying and talking about retirement before his career had even properly started.

cvMax also described how young players who knew little about contracts and regulations could be pressured through accusations and threats, while being told that everything was supposedly for their own good.

What makes this story hit even harder is knowing where Kanavi ended up.

He went from almost losing his career before it began to becoming one of the most accomplished junglers in the LPL, winning MSI and Asian Games gold(2023 Hangzhou), and eventually joining HLE.

That kid who wanted to beat the best jungler on the best team never lost his ambition.

It's crazy to think how close we might have been to never seeing Kanavi become the player he is today.