Dplus KIA confirmed on May 29 that 18-year-old jungler Kim "Sharvel" Dan-woo will start their LCK Week 9 final against Kiwoom DRX at the LCK Arena, with Choi "Lucid" Yong-hyeok moved to the Challengers League for the same matchday. The organisation said the change was made to give the rookie an LCK start.
Dplus KIA sit fifth at 9-7 and have already locked their Legend Group berth for Rounds 3-4, with BNK FearX and HANJIN BRION mathematically out of reach. Today's match — DK's last of Rounds 1-2 — decides only intra-group seeding.
Sharvel has spent his entire career inside the Dplus KIA structure. He made his pro debut with the organisation's academy team in October 2022 alongside Jeon "Siwoo" Si-woo — now DK's starting top laner — and was promoted to DK Challengers in December 2023. He has started every LCK CL split since where he's seen as one of the best jungle prospects. His only previous senior-roster outing came at KeSPA Cup 2025, where he started a group-stage win against KT Rolster on Aatrox; today is his LCK debut. Sharvel is seen as one of the best jungle prospects of LCK CL.
Dplus KIA also confirmed a post-match fan meeting featuring six players — Siwoo, Lucid, Sharvel, ShowMaker, Smash and Career — covering the LCK starting five alongside Lucid.
