NRG Esports’ Valorant roster for 2023 is starting to take shape.
The North American organization today announced the signing of former OpTic Gaming in-game leader Pujan “FNS” Mehta — the first member of a completely overhauled roster.
NRG released four players from its original roster in the offseason, leaving only Sam “s0m” Oh. Despite showing initial promise, the team never quite cracked the top tier of NA Valorant, failing to qualify for any international events this year.
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NRG Esports sign FNS for 2023 season
FNS is one of the most respected IGLs in Valorant, having led OpTic to a championship win at Masters Reykjavik and top-three finishes at Copenhagen and Istanbul.
That showing amounted to the most consistent in Valorant this year. While they missed out on a first-place finish at Valorant Champions 2022, falling to LOUD in the grand final, OpTic were still considered the best Valorant team this year.
The 30-year-old had been a mainstay on the OpTic roster since their Team Envy days. He reunites with OpTic coach Chet “Chet” Singh on NRG. The duo were the brains behind OpTic’s success, shaping the team into a mean machine known for their impeccable mid-rounding and an uncanny ability to adapt to different opponents.
FNS will not be the only OpTic player to join NRG, and Victor “Victor” Wong and Austin “crashies” Roberts have both been linked to NRG as well, according to Dot Esports’ George Geddes. The pair expressed the desire to get signed together, following OpTic’s failure to secure a partnership slot in the Americas league.
The final member of the team is expected to be former FunPlus Phoenix star Ardis “ardiis” Svarenieks, who is moving from the EMEA region to Los Angeles. The Chamber main will likely fill the role of Jaccob “yay” Whiteaker, who is now plying his trade at Cloud9.
The remaining NRG players are expected to be confirmed over the rest of the week.
READ MORE: NRG welcomes back Chet as coach for VCT 2023 season
