Top Esports Opens Investigation Into LPL Jungler Naiyou Over Unusual Build and Fair Play Concerns
TL;DR
- Top Esports has confirmed it is investigating jungler Yang "naiyou" Zijian following what the club describes as "unusual performance" and suspected violations of fair play during the team's elimination series against Weibo Gaming on March 2nd.
- The suspicion centres on naiyou purchasing magic-resistance items on Skarner in Game 5 rather than armour items, despite Weibo Gaming's win condition being heavily tied to their ADC Elk's Jinx, though the club has not officially confirmed this as the specific reason for the investigation.
Top Esports has gone public with an investigation into one of its own players, a rare and serious step for any professional esports organisation. The club posted an official statement on Weibo confirming that jungler Yang "naiyou" Zijian is under investigation for suspected violations of club rules, professional ethics, and conduct affecting competitive fairness. The team has formally reported the matter to the LPL and requested disciplinary intervention from the league.
The statement did not name a specific incident, but the timing makes the context clear. Top Esports were eliminated from the LPL on March 2nd by Weibo Gaming in a five-game series, and scrutiny fell on naiyou's decision-making in the final game almost immediately after the match ended.
The Build That Raised Questions
In Game 5 of the elimination series, naiyou was playing Skarner, a champion typically itemised with armour when facing a team whose primary threat is a physical damage-dealing ADC. Weibo Gaming's dominant win condition throughout the series was Zhao "Elk" Jia-Hao on Jinx, a marksman who deals almost exclusively physical damage. Standard competitive itemisation in that situation points clearly toward armour purchases to reduce Jinx's output.
Instead, naiyou built multiple magic-resistance components, an unusual and difficult-to-justify decision given the game state and the opposing team's composition. The incongruity of the build choice in context drew immediate attention from analysts, other players, and the broader Chinese esports community watching the series.
It cannot be confirmed that this specific build is the sole basis for the investigation. The club's statement references broader conduct concerns rather than a single itemisation choice, and professional match integrity investigations often involve scrutiny of patterns rather than isolated moments. But the timing of the investigation announcement and the public conversation that followed Game 5 make the connection difficult to ignore.
Top Esports' Statement and What It Signals
The language in Top Esports' public statement is notably strong for an organisation addressing one of its own active players. The club wrote that naiyou is suspected of "seriously violating club rules and regulations and professional ethics, and engaging in improper conduct that affects the fairness of the competition."
The club went further in a separate part of the statement: "Our club has always adhered to the bottom line of fair competition and resolutely resists all violations that affect the fairness of the competition. We will deal with internal violations strictly and severely. We thank our fans, partners, and the public for their supervision. The club will take this as a lesson, uphold its professional aspirations, and build a compliant, healthy, and positive esports team."
The phrasing "strictly and severely" in relation to internal violations is a deliberate signal to the LPL, to sponsors, and to the fanbase that Top Esports is treating this as more than a procedural matter.
A Teammate's Defence
Not everyone within the Top Esports camp has pointed fingers. Top laner Bai "369" Jiahao posted a public defence of his teammates on social media following the match, writing: "I've seen a lot of malicious comments about the jungler and support, and I really can't help but say something. How can newcomers achieve results and have the confidence to make a name for themselves if they keep saying that there are no new talents in the LPL?"
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