Jaccob ‘yay’ Whiteaker is reportedly parting ways with Cloud9 ahead of the mid-season transfer window in March. Here are a few teams that the Valorant star could possibly land on for the rest of 2023.
With yay reportedly moving on from Cloud9, the North American star will be looking for a new team to compete with for 2023. Interest in ‘El Diablo’, the best player in the world in 2022, is believed to be high, but only a select few teams might be able to afford his services.
The mid-season transfer window will run between March 6 and March 25, giving VCT partner teams the chance to make last-minute changes before the season starts.
So where will ‘El Diablo’ ply his trade next? We look at the most likely options.
Evil Geniuses
Evil Geniuses are an interesting landing spot for yay as the North American team has committed to a 10-man roster and had some success at VCT LOCK//IN with veterans and rookies on stage.
Why it could work
There is one vacant spot on Evil Geniuses’ roster, which is still missing a marquee name. EG could experiment and see what combination of its current team could fit well next to the North American sniper.
Why it couldn’t
Evil Geniuses might have revamped and added depth to its roster, but the team is not considered an international title contender. On OpTic Gaming and Cloud9, yay had a shot at international success, and he would presumably want to continue to try to win trophies in 2023. EG is still a project that might take time to develop into a championship-winning roster.
It’s also worth mentioning that while the organization already has several players on its books, not one of its members should be making anywhere close to the salary that a star like yay would command.
Probability of being yay’s destination?
There’s a realistic chance.
Team Liquid
Team Liquid are an organization with deep pockets and a willingness to spend big on players across esports. While Liquid’s team competes in a different region, a blockbuster trade for an import player isn’t out of the norm for the legacy org. And yay has said in the past that he would entertain the thought of playing in Europe.
Why it could work
Team Liquid snatched up one of the few great snipers in the offseason in Saif ‘Sayf’ Jibraeel, but yay has a better track record internationally and could also complement the Swedish player if they play alongside each other. Liquid could create a three-headed monster, with Sayf, Elias ‘Jamppi’ Olkkonen and yay all able to pick up the Operator and follow the orders of VCT Masters winner Igor ‘Redgar’ Vlasov.
Why it couldn’t
The role changes with such a move would be a nightmare. While the three-headed monster sounds fun in theory, having three players with overlapping roles would see Team Liquid either break out weird compositions or stick someone in the sort of supportive role that doesn’t suit them.
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There is such a thing as too much firepower.
Probability of being yay’s destination?
Not realistic but there’s a chance.
NRG Esports
NRG Esports snapping up yay would reunite him with his OpTic Gaming teammates and potentially extend their window of international Valorant success.
Why it could work
NRG Esports is an interesting option for yay as it would bring back together the former OpTic Gaming core that placed top three at every VCT international event in 2022. The North American sniper would also reunite with his former head coach Chet ‘Chet’ Singh, who crafted setups for him to thrive while at OpTic.
Why it couldn’t
The former OpTic Gaming core was not a cheap pickup by any means, and while NRG hasn’t historically been averse to spending on stars, they’ve already presumably put a lot into getting what they already have. Also, the role situation for the team would mean someone would have to switch to a supportive Agent and a player would need to go to the bench. Deciding between which players to change around after a promising start to 2023, with a quarter-final run at VCT LOCK//IN, would be a challenge.
Probability of being yay’s destination?
Long shot but not impossible.
Other destinations: Fun to think about but unlikely
KOI
The Spanish team might look to upgrade its roster and would have a spot for yay. The only role on the team not filled by a veteran with international experience is their entry Duelist, which is held currently by a young prospect in Berkant ‘Wolfen’ Joshkun.
Vitality
The French organization is no stranger to building super teams, and yay’s signing would go a long way toward assembling a championship-caliber team. But it’s important to point out that Vitality put a lot of effort into building their current roster from scratch and that the player that yay would most likely replace, Karel ‘Twisten’ Ašenbrener, acquitted himself well in São Paulo.
Bleed Esports
A South East Asian esports team competing in the Singapore and Malaysia Challengers league has tried to land EMEA stars with big price tags before and might be convinced to try it again with the North American player.
Keep up to date with all the transfer activity in the Valorant scene with our mid-season live tracker.