Los Angeles Valiant acquire three players from Florida Mayhem

Olivia Richman Published 10/05/2019

The Los Angeles Valiant are changing up their roster yet again. 

This time, the Valiant struck a deal with Florida Mayhem, trading Valiant main tank Koo “Fate” Pan-seung in exchange for three players. Mayhem off-tank Caleb “McGravy” McGarvey is heading to the Valiant, along with two playrs from Mayhem Academy: main tank Russell “FCTFCTN” Campbell and DPS Johannes “Shax” Nielsen. 

“We’ve got some big news 7’s. Give a huge #Valla welcome to the newest members of our roster. We are lucky to have you. Welcome home. Stage 3, here we come!” the team said on Twitter.

This trade comes just days after the Valiant let go of coach Shin “Dongsu” Dong-soo. This reportedly mutual decision was the most recent coaching change for the Los Angeles-based team. The veteran Overwatch League competitors finished the first stage with a shocking 0-7 record. While they improved a bit in Stage 2, they still rank 17th out of the 20 OWL teams. 

The disappointing performance this stage may have led the Los Angeles Valiant to rely on roster switch-ups once again, in hopes of improving come Stage 3. 

McGravy has been a pro Overwatch player since 2016. He was picked up by the Florida Mayhem after playing off-tank for Dallas Fuel’s Contenders Academy squad, Team Envy. Now that the Mayhem have purposefully created an all-Korean roster, McGravy didn’t fit in with their new vision. 

This also meant that FCTCTN and Shax would most likely have no chance of moving up to the Mayhem from the academy team. FCTFCTN was dropped by the Houston Outlaws after the inaugural season of the OWL. He joined the Mayhem Academy in 2018. Shax played in the 2018 Overwatch World Cup on Team Denmark. 

Meanwhile, the Mayhem tweeted that Fate’s “veteran leadership” has them excited about the new trade. 

“Today is another giant step forward in the commitment to our fans and our new direction with the acquisition of Fate. He has proven himself in Contenders, Overwatch League and helped bring Korea another World Cup last year,” the team said. 

The Overwatch League Stage 3 will begin June 6.

Olivia Richman

About Olivia Richman

Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.

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