T1 Signs American Player Daniel “Rossy” Abedrabbo for VALORANT Roster
The VALORANT off-season of 2023-24 has seen some unexpected moves, including American players joining Pacific teams. One notable signing is Jaccob “yay” Whiteaker joining BLEED as an import. Not wanting to be left behind, T1 has made their own move.
A New Addition to the T1 Roster
T1 recently signed American initiator player Daniel “Rossy” Abedrabbo on November 9th. Rossy previously played for Turtle Troop, FaZe Clan, and TSM. This marks T1’s fourth signing of the off-season, bringing their roster to seven players and allowing for potential experimentation heading into VCT 2024.
Rossy has been a part of the NA VALORANT scene for quite some time, playing for Immortals early in 2021 before joining big organizations like TSM and FaZe Clan. His skills as an initiator, particularly with agents like Breach and KAY/O, have contributed to his success, reaching the top tier in North America on two occasions. When franchising was introduced, Rossy remained with FaZe Clan before eventually joining the unsigned team Turtle Troop for the underdog 2023 season in NA Challengers.
Despite helping Turtle Troop win the relegation tournament and securing their spot in the Challengers scene for 2024, Rossy had multiple options in the off-season. T1 was one of those options and showed interest in bolstering their initiator pool while also adding an import. Considering that T1 had an American import, Joseph “ban” Seungmin Oh, for the entire 2023 season, and the current roster has experience playing with NA players like Ha “Sayaplayer” Jung-woo, Lee “Carpe” Jae-hyeok, and Son “xeta” Seon-ho, Rossy’s addition fits well with the team.
It remains to be seen how much playing time Rossy will get, as VALORANT teams typically rely heavily on their starting five and substitute players are a luxury. However, T1 already has a strong starting five, with each role filled out effectively, especially with the signing of Lee “k1Ng” Seung-won.
One potential challenge for Rossy is communication, as he is not Korean like the rest of the team. This may be a similar hurdle to what new signing Kevin “xccurate” Susanto will face. However, T1 seems to be moving away from having a fully Korean roster, which could provide more flexibility down the line.
Related: T1 VALORANT makes 3 changes following lackluster end to 2023 competitive season, T1 VALORANT reportedly transitioning away from full Korean roster with pickup