NA representatives gear up for an intense showdown at VCT LOCK//IN São Paulo

Following the conclusion of a lengthy off-season, the first VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) event of 2023 is set to commence on February 13. All thirty global teams accepted into the Riot partner program for the International Leagues, along with two teams from China, will participate in the event including the five NA representatives from the Americas League: 100 Thieves, Cloud9, Sentinels, Evil Geniuses, and NRG Esports.

Nearly all teams effectively utilized the five-month off-season by either making key changes to their rosters or undergoing a complete revamp in order to increase their chances of success during the VCT 2023 season.

100 Thieves

100 Thieves had a challenging 2022 VALORANT season, starting off poorly with a 1-4 record at Stage 1 Challengers and also notoriously changing rosters mid-tournament. However, a major roster revamp before Stage 2, including the addition of a new head coach and team manager, set the team up for success. They finished the Stage with a 5th-6th place finish at the Main Event; although they were unable to qualify for Masters Copenhagen, they made it to Champions Istanbul through the Last Chance Qualifiers.

With the season coming to an end, 100 Thieves was informed of being accepted into Riot’s partner program and decided to add Matthew "Cryocells" Panganiban to their already lethal roster. Cryocells was a key member of XSET throughout VCT 2022, contributing to their title win at Stage 2 Main Event and a 5th-6th place at Champions Istanbul. His addition to the team has already proven to be effective with the team securing the Red Bull Home Ground title in their new roster debut in Manchester. 100 Thieves is expected to be a top competitor at VCT tournaments this season and a team to look out for.

100 Thieves will face EDward Gaming on February 23 in their opening match at the Brazil LOCK//IN event. Their roster for the event is as follows:

Peter "Asuna" Mazuryk Sean "bang" Bezerra Derrek "Derrek" Ha Brenden "stellar" McGrath Matthew "Cryocells" Panganiban

Cloud9

Despite ending VCT 2021 on a high note, Cloud9 was unable to replicate their success to a similar extent in the previous season with only Stage 1 ending in their favor with a 3rd place finish. To stay competitive in the increasingly tough NA scene, Cloud9 did not shy away from making major roster moves by signing arguably the most impactful player in the NA scene: Jaccob "yay" Whiteaker. His offensive capabilities and mechanics are off the charts and his name is bound to be on the players’ leaderboard at every event he participates in.

However, Cloud9 took it a step further and introduced Jordan "Zellsis" Montemurro, a founding member of Version1’s core and a key contributor to the team’s success especially during VCT 2021. These additions to the roster have the potential to elevate Cloud9 to a title contender in the upcoming VCT season as yay currently holds a 1.16 Rating on 244 ACS and Zellsis 1.21 rating on 231 ACS. It is also worth noting that this duo will be joined by Nathan "leaf" Orf, yet another arguably top 5 player in the NA scene.

Cloud9 will be facing Paper Rex on February 14 in their opening match at VCT LOCK//IN. Their roster for the event is as follows:

Nathan "leaf" Orf Erick "Xeppaa" Bach Anthony "vanity" Malaspina Jaccob "yay" Whiteaker Jordan "Zellsis" Montemurro

Mateja "Qpert" Mijovic (6th Player)

Sentinels

Sentinels were a little less conservative in their approach while revamping the roster with only Tyson "TenZ" Ngo being retained as part of the main roster. After a relatively poor season, the organization wanted to return to their winning ways and thus started the journey to developing a revamped roster. After finding a new coaching staff, they announced the arrival of Zachary "zekken" Patrone, yet another member of the V1 core, as well as Gustavo "Sacy" Rossi and Bryan "pANcada" Luna, two former members of LOUD, the Brazilian team that stole the glory at 2022 Champions Istanbul.

To add further depth to their already stacked team, they signed Rory "dephh" Jackson, a member of XSET’s 2022 roster and announced the return of Hunter "SicK" Mims as a 6th man for the upcoming season. Each of these players brings a unique set of skills to the team and can prove to be a lethal combination come KICK//OFF event in Brazil.

Sentinels will go up against Fnatic on February 24 for their inaugural matchup at VCT LOCK//IN Brazil. Their roster for the event is as follows:

Tyson "TenZ" Ngo Zachary "zekken" Patrone Gustavo "Sacy" Rossi Bryan "pANcada" Luna Rory "dephh" Jackson Hunter "SicK" Mims

Evil Geniuses

EG found their much-need breakthrough into the VCT in the 2022 season but their first effort was not enough, failing to get a single win in the group stage of VCT 2022: NA Stage 1 Challengers. Stage 2 witnessed improvement with a 5th-6th place, but they faltered in the Last Chance Qualifiers by failing to make any LANs for the season.

Amongst the teams selected for the Riot partner program, EG was the last to finalize their roster precisely because they had decided to keep their core but add more experience and depth to the lineup by acquiring Ethan "Ethan" Arnold and Brendan "BcJ" Jensen. Ethan’s latest stop was at NRG but he left the team after their run at NA LCQ came to an end, while BcJ finished the year with LAN participation in both Copenhagen and Istanbul, as well as a title win in the Stage 2 Main Event. These additions to the roster compounded by the presence of several substitutes can potentially elevate Evil Geniuses as a title contender in the upcoming VCT season.

Evil Geniuses will face off against Team Heretics in their opener on February 15 at VCT LOCK//IN. Their roster for the event is as follows:

Kelden "Boostio" Pupello Jeffrey "Reformed" Lu Alexander "jawgemo" Mor Corbin "C0M" Lee Vince "Apotheon" Le Brendan "BcJ" Jensen Ethan "Ethan" Arnold Max "Demon1" Mazanov Kyle "ScrewFace" Jensen

NRG Esports

Although NRG had a decent run during the recently concluded VCT season, there’s no doubt that it could have been better. Their Stage 1 run came to a rather hasty end, but they then had a great comeback in the subsequent stage placing 4th at the event only a few matches away from a possible LAN qualification. Courtesy of VCT’s structure, they retained the opportunity at Last Chance Qualifiers to make Champions Istanbul, but that avenue too didn’t amount to anything substantial either.

Entering the Off-season, they decided to restructure their roster around Sam "s0m" Oh and the ex-OpTic Gaming core. While this signing itself was significant, owing to the success OpTic experienced in 2022, they needed a heavy hitter to rival other teams in the region and one of EMEA’s best, Ardis "ardiis" Svarenieks, checked all the boxes. Being able to consistently maintain a 1.12 KD with 229.7 ACS despite competing in two of the three LANs during VCT 2022 is an achievement that speaks volumes for ardiis’ ability and demonstrates the level of talent that will be on display at São Paulo.

NRG Esports’ opening match at VCT LOCK//IN Brazil will be against KOI on February 13. Their roster for the event is as follows:

Sam "s0m" Oh Pujan "FNS" Mehta Austin "crashies" Roberts Victor "Victor" Wong Ardis "ardiis" Svarenieks Zander "thwifo" Kim

Players to watch in 2023:

The following 5 players had the greatest impact on their teams in 2022, and we anticipate they will continue to excel at LOCK//IN and throughout the Valorant Champions Tour this year: