100 Thieves has officially signed former VCT caster duo Sean Gares to a head coaching position and Daniel “ddk” Kapadia to the General Manager role.
100 Thieves has officially signed former VCT caster duo Sean Gares and Daniel "ddk" Kapadia. The news was announced across social media on March 22nd.
Time and time again, 100 Thieves have doubled-down on their commitment to building a championship roster in Valorant. Now, following the shocking departure of Sean Gares and ddk from the VCT as the marque casting duo, CEO Matthew “Nadeshot” Haag announced via the 100 Thieves YouTube page that they’ve acquired the duo to fill the head coach and general manager vacancies.
"It’s hard to sustain success and it's really hard to win. Our motivation to get into Valorant was to build the best team possible and win as many championships as possible. We’re here. 10Thieves is not going anywhere in Valorant. I promise you, we will get better. I will give you that guarantee. We will win championships one day."
Sean Gares and ddk bring Stability
100T failed to make the VCT playoffs to start 2022. Amid a flurry of rushed and drastic in-season roster decisions the organization has been searching for stability in their front office. Enter Sean Gares and ddk, two former counter-strike players with many years in that scene. But even more importantly, invaluable experience working as analysts in Valorant.
“We focus on communication. We focus on the things that are really lacking in North America. The things that I’ve seen in the scene as an in-game leader for 20 years. I know how to communicate with players” said Sean Gares in the announcement video.
As Sean explains, the key to working as a coach is a balance between teaching, relationships, and communication. In his 20-some years of experience, Gares has proven to be effective in all three areas and understands the player mindset better than most. 100 Thieves, a team who had great promise and initially one of the most talented North American rosters, lacked structure. Sean Gares, and to a larger extent ddk, will immediately provide a semblance of stability.
“It's going to be about understanding the players as human beings”
In effect, the 100T Valorant model takes a brand new approach by building the team from the top down. In the past, the team used a player driven system that dictated roster moves which eventually led to their decline in play. Bringing on both Gares and ddk signifies a shift in philosophy that speaks to them wanting a stronger foundation to build off.
Related articles
Mikes Signs as Assistant Coach
Additionally, a less flashy, but arguably just as impactful signing is bringing on former Team Envy head coach Michael "Mikes" Hockom as an assistant. In Mike's time with Envy, the team nearly reached the pinnacle of Valorant but fell short against Gambit in the Masters 3 finals. Envy eventually decided against re-signing him, but many considered that a mistake.
The wealth of Valorant knowledge between these three signings will undoubtedly change the culture around the team. It’s almost a dream scenario for a team to land all three of these talents. And Nadeshot proves once again he believes in Valorant and has shown his commitment towards building a championship roster.
Looking ahead, 100 Thieves won’t be participating at Masters Stage 1 in Reykjavík, but the next time we see them competing they should have a new look to the roster, to be determined at a later date.
