Report: NRG close in on core roster

Jeffrey "Mnmzzz" Moore contributed to this report

North American Counter-Strike fans have eagerly awaited the re-introduction of NRG to the scene four years after selling their roster to Evil Geniuses. In some weird twist of irony, Evil Geniuses plans to exit the scene while NRG is now building up a new roster to jump back in.

Dust2.us originally reported that NRG had identified Josh "oSee" Ohm as their primary target and were well underway in negotiations with the player. Now, sources close to the situation tell Dust2.us that NRG is also pursuing Damian "daps" Steele and Vincent "Brehze" Cayonte, formerly of Liquid and Evil Geniuses. Both players have been out of contract, and NRG will not need to pay a buyout fee.

For daps, he is expected to return to play after spending the last year and a half as Liquid's coach and spending six months in 2021 as Evil Geniuses' head coach. Between those stints, he captained "Orgless", a short-lived unsalaried roster hoping to break through in the NA scene. daps has had a long career of being both a player and coach. Now, he is expected to sit down amongst his teammates once more.

Brehze is one of the more exciting names in the mix, as he faced immense scrutiny towards the end of his time on Evil Geniuses. The eighth best Player of the Year in 2019 has seen his performance stumble since COVID-19, while his younger competitors surpassed his ability. It's a curious addition that makes more sense once you realize the history between him and daps. The two had played together for NRG and EG between 2016 and 2019, then once more while on Evil Geniuses.

Dust2.us also knows that the final two roster spots on NRG have not yet been decided. Last night, a reddit post indicated that Jadan "HexT" Postma and Justin "FaNg" Coakley were the final two. While Dust2.us cannot confirm that they will be part of the lineup, they are being considered for the final structure.

One piece that seems to be missing from this lineup is Timothy "autimatic" Ta, one of the pillars of Evil Geniuses' roster and an incredibly consistent North American player. Sources close to the situation understand that autimatic has been considered but is keeping his options open to other potential opportunities.

NRG's new core is expected to consist of:

• Josh "oSee" Ohm

• Vincent "Brehze" Cayonte

• Damian "daps" Steele