Ending the LEC 2024 Summer Playoffs in third place once again, Team BDS and their midlaner, Ilias "nuc" Bizriken, are now looking toward the upcoming Season Finals. They hope to improve on their recent results and finally break their ongoing curse. In this exclusive League of Legends interview, the French midlaner discusses the circumstances surrounding BDS' recent struggles and the current midlane meta.

What do you think went wrong against G2?

Ilias "nuc" Bizriken: "I am really disappointed about my performance in game 2. We should have won that game. I feel I could have done much more, especially in the 1v1 against Caps (Rasmus Winther). There was a moment where I should have just killed him, but I completely missed my ult, and that helped them get back into the game. Game 3 was rough; they played better together. In game 4, I got cheesed at level 1 when we wanted to get vision, and then I died. After that, it felt like we crumbled under all this mental pressure, it was hard to keep our team focused. It felt like we were a bit out of it.

Despite everything, BDS was able to pick up early leads in almost every games. What do you think is the reason you weren't able to extend those leads into wins?

nuc: I think there are a few reasons, but the main one is playing a high-stakes match. The pressure was definitely on. We had success in the early game, but we could not find out how to extend our leads and keep our growth going during the games. It has been a long time since we had a series like that.

You had a very difficult schedule, first playing on Tuesday against GX, then Friday against KC, and Saturday against G2. Do you feel like BDS ran out of stamina in the semifinals? Did the amount of back-to-back matches impact your performances?

nuc: I'm not sure. It’s the first time we had to play a series of best-of-fives like this. We never had the experience of being in such a position. We had to push through the matches, even drinking energy drinks, and then forcing ourselves to sleep after the KC match, only to wake up early again and head back to the studio almost immediately. I don't think it affected us that much, but I can't say for sure. I'm not a mental coach, so I can't really assess that. I think there were just a lot of different reasons why we lost today.

BDS started the season strong but struggled in the playoffs, especially against MDK and G2. Do you agree with the sentiment that the team looked worse in the playoffs compared to the group stage, and what do you think caused this decline?

nuc: I agree that we looked much worse in the MAD Lions KOI series. Everything was going well, like in scrims and on stage, but I think we stagnated and relied too much on what we had already developed. We held ourselves back because we were winning too much. Against MDK, we were overconfident and not precise enough. We didn't need to be precise before because we were winning so much. The series against them was a reality check. Then we played G2, who were in good shape at that point, and we got stomped. We had to do a full reset of our team after that series. In the GIANTX series, we had a better early game, but in the mid game, we didn't extend our lead or pick our fights well. We still performed decently, and it gave us our confidence back.

Despite the loss, you’re still in the Season Finals upper bracket, just one best-of-five away from Worlds. How do you feel about the tournament, and what are your plans to ensure you do well?

nuc: Right now, I need some time to reset after losing to G2 and dealing with all the struggles. The Season Finals are in about two weeks, which gives us enough time to go back to basics and fix our issues. We've made it to the top 3 every split, and although it's not easy, I believe that with a bit more time, we’ll come back stronger. We still want to win.

How do you personally feel about the current midlane meta, especially with the focus on ADCs?

nuc: When the meta changes, it’s nice because you can explore new strategies and it brings more diversity. I was actually pretty happy when the ADC meta arrived because I feel it suits me well. I used to be an ADC main before switching to midlane. We’ll have to see if the meta goes back to mages, but I’m good at that too, so I don’t mind. I understand why some people don’t like the current meta, though. It feels like the same champions are picked all the time. If there were more diversity and ADCs were only picked in specific situations, it might be better and healthier for the game.

If you could choose the French League of Legends team for the Olympic Esports Games next year, which players would you select to represent France?

nuc: I would say probably the top side of BDS: Adam (Adam Maanane), Sheo (Théo Borile), and myself. For ADC, I would choose Hans Sama (Steven Liv). I’m not so sure about the support, but maybe Zoelys (Théo Le Scornec)?

You'd maybe have to look towards the LFL. You could also always send Jean "Trayton" Medzadourian in the worst case scenario.

nuc: Yeah, I guess you could just send TraYtoN, why not.

Any final words for your fans and supporters?

nuc: Yeah... Sorry about the G2 series. I didn’t play well myself. I think we could have won if we had played better and did not collapse under the pressure of the match. I’m sorry. Things have been a bit weird, but they will get better for sure."