Today, I’ll be giving you an in-depth analysis of some of the top CS:GO teams for 2022. Each player in the starting lineup is evaluated by HLTV’s (a reliable source for CS:GO stats) 2.0 rating, which includes Deaths Per Round, KAST (kills, assists, survived, traded), Impact Rating, Average Damage Per Round, and Kills Per Round. I’ve also included various other stats such as the Opening Kill Ratio (OKR), KDR, headshot percentage, 1v1 clutch rate, and so on. Lastly, I've included a personal analysis for each player based on my observations and their stats. 

Before I go into each player’s performance, let me briefly explain what each stat from HLTV’s 2.0 rating means. With this, you'll get a better idea of a player's strengths and weaknesses. 

DPR (Deaths Per Round) - The lower the better, generally speaking. Conversely, your ADR (Average Damage Per Round) often goes down as well. For example, do you save an AWP in a 1v5 situation or fight back? Because it’s probably better to save, your DPR improves, but your ADR is now 0, more or less. Thus, take ADR with a grain of salt. 

On the other hand, surviving too much could mean you’re not partaking in enough encounters, (such as 1v1’s), leading to more rounds lost. So while stats measure a player’s performance, they don’t tell the whole story. Still helpful, though. 

A decent DPR may be along the lines of .65 (dying 65% of the time per round, on average) or less.

KAST (Kills, Assists, Survived, Traded) - KAST is the percentage of rounds where a player had one or more of these outcomes. KAST tends to be more oriented toward a player’s individual performance compared to the Impact Rating. 

For example, KAST doesn’t measure the impact of your kills, but rather, whether you got a kill or not. Nevertheless, it’s a useful tool for determining how consistent a player is, offering some level of support (and impact) as well. Incidentally, support rounds are based on AST, or assists, survival rate, and getting traded. 

A decent KAST rating could be along the lines of 70% (per round) or more.

IPR (Impact Rating) - Measures the impact from multi-kills, 1v1 clutches, and opening kills. An opening kill, for example, makes it easier to take or hold a site. The norm is 1 and the higher it is, the better. While the IPR is influenced by your total number of kills, it focuses more on the effect those kills had on your enemies and teammates. Combining the two then, the IPR measures your performance on an individual and team basis, with a greater emphasis on the latter. 

An Impact Rating of 1.15 or more is solid, generally speaking. 

ADR (Average Damage Per Round) - Speaks for itself. As I’ve mentioned before, you don’t have to have a super high ADR to be effective, but it is nice. Sometimes, it’s better to save your weapon for the next round instead of dying the very same round, with little to no money. Jame (AWPer) is one example, with a subpar ADR, but excellent DPR. 

On the other hand, a solid ADR means you’re not only dealing damage, but partaking in various encounters throughout the match, giving you a fair share of opportunities, at the very least. Some players are able to maintain both, however, so credit to them. 

A solid ADR may be along the lines of 80 or more.

KPR (Kills Per Round) - Also speaks for itself, but similar to ADR, measures (indirectly) a player’s consistency, encounter success, opportunity rate, aggressiveness (to an extent), and even game sense. Furthermore, if you have a high headshot percentage, that can improve your KPR and ADR. 

Just like with ADR, you don't always want to go for the kill to boost your KPR, so to speak. Even if you get a kill in a 1v5, but subsequently died from this kind of late and aggressive play, it's still not worth it.

A decent KPR could be along the lines of .70 (70% of the rounds) or more.

Lastly, we should also keep in mind the effect game sense or awareness has. Although this cannot be directly measured, it still serves a vital role in-game. One way to measure (indirectly) it is through stats. A solid KDR, for example, usually implies that the player is putting himself in the right spots for one or more kills per round.

Rating 2.0: Combines all the stats aforementioned, with 1 as the norm. The higher the better. ZywOo has one of the highest 2.0 ratings at the moment, sitting around 1.33. 

Outside of stats, you can also observe a player’s behavior, positioning, rotation skills (or how fast/effective a player is going from one site to another), kill efficiency, clutches, etc. to gauge how strong a player's awareness is. 

Now that you have an idea of how important game sense is, along with what these stats mean, let's bring out some of the top CS:GO teams for 2022. 

10. NIP (Ninjas in Pyjamas)

Arguably one of the best AWPers in the game today.

NIP has not changed their starting lineup in 2022 thus far. In 2021, they did acquire dev1ce and es3tag though. So their current lineup looks like this (in no particular order):

1. dev1ce

2. es3tag

3. Plopski

4. REZ

5. hampus

Coach: dJL

Let’s take a closer look at each player’s performance so far.

As one of the top AWPers in the game, dev1ce was well known for his time with Astralis. Personally, when I watched him play, he had this sort of aggressive playstyle, yet he was able to fall back when he needed to. It’s as if he would take a shot, fall back a little, take another shot, etc., giving him more opportunities for frags.

Looking at some of his 2021 stats, he has 1.14 overall rating (based on the 2.0 rating, with 1 being the norm), K/D ratio of 1.16, Impact Rating of 1.21, and an opening kill ratio of 1.43. Looking at his overall stats, he has a decent ~58% 1v1 clutch rate, 1.28 Impact Rating, DPR of .62, KDR of 1.25, KPR of .78, and an OKR of 1.40 so far.

So a solid Opening Kill Ratio (Opening Kills/Opening Deaths) could mean a few things, given a sufficient sample size. 

For starters, opening kills often happen early in rounds (not necessarily the majority, but a good chunk). One reason being is that your opponent is usually not expecting you to push early (as a way to disrupt their timing). Or sometimes you want to cross or peek a certain angle early on, such as mid on Inferno or Mirage. And perhaps most importantly, players, especially AWPers, can use their range to their advantage. 

Also, when you’re getting early kills consistently, it means that you’re playing somewhat aggressively (moreso t, since ct’s can hold angles more often without having to plant) throughout the match. There’s nothing with this as long as it’s working. In order to pull it off successfully though, you need to know where to position yourself and fall back to, more or less. Good AWPers like dev1ce tend to succeed in this area, especially at longer ranges. 

A good OKR also has a correlation with a player’s awareness and as I’ve briefly touched on, the effectiveness of a semi-aggressive to aggressive playstyle every now and then. Occasionally, for example, an opening kill might come from an aggressive T/CT AWPer with a good spawn. While it is true a CT might hold an angle indefinitely waiting for a T to peek, in the meantime, a frag elsewhere might have occurred or simply the aggression increased as the round came to an end.

Nonetheless, some opening kills do happen from a more anti-aggressive approach as you wait or expect for an enemy to push into certain areas. Keep this in mind as you gauge each player’s performance.

Sometimes, you might see a player with a good OKR, but a low sample size over a few years. This could mean that although they do often succeed in getting the first kill, their playstyle dictates a more conservative approach.

One last note about a good OKR. It doesn’t mean you have to always play aggressive early on (as sometimes you can wait mid-round instead). When you do get opening kills consistently though, (whether it’s early on or later in-game), it usually means you’re capitalizing on your opponent’s mistakes, and essentially, acts as another way to disrupt your opponent’s timing. This also gives you more opportunities to partake in as you gain the upper hand. Don’t forget about the impact this has on your game sense as well. Plus, when you have an AWP, even if you miss your shot at long range, there’s a fair chance you can fall back and regroup.

In dev1ce’s case, he’s able to maintain an excellent OKR because of his superb game sense, as he often knows where to position himself to get those opening kills (early on and mid-round as well). He’s also able to capitalize on his aggressive playstyle just enough where he gains additional opportunities while surviving at a high rate (noted by his low DPR). His aim and flick prowess deserve some credit as well. 

In some sense, then, it’s like dev1ce has just the right amount of aggressiveness to disrupt his opponent’s timing without drawing too much attention. Or even with an aggressive playstyle at times, he’s able to use different spots or the same ones to trap his enemies over and over again.

es3tag, unfortunately, had a down year in 2021. The only stat that really seems to stand out for him is his DPR, at .65. For a rifler, his headshot percentage was extremely low, at ~36%. On a side note, even if you have a low hs%, you can make up for it with good awareness, as you’ll often put yourself in a good position for multiple encounters.

On the flip side, est3ag had a ~64% 1v1 clutch rate in 2021 with a 62% clutch rate overall. Hopefully, in 2022, he can have more impact frags and kills, but at the very least, his clutches are consistent, which can be a turning point for some games.

Plopski, unfortunately, had a down year in 2021 as well. He held a KDR of .94, ADR of 70, and a KPR of .62. His OKR was quite poor too, sitting at .89. His two strong points, however, was his DPR at .66 and 1v1 clutch rate above 50%. His overall stats are somewhat better, with a KDR and IR above 1, KPR at .70 and KAST at ~72%. Hopefully, in 2022, he can improve upon those stats, but at the very least, he’s a fairly clutch rifler that survives frequently.

REZ is another rifler for NIP. In 2021, he posted a KDR of 1.05 and a headshot rate of 50%. Looking at his overall stats, he still maintains a headshot percentage close to 50%, KDR of 1.05, KAST of ~70%, and an Impact Rating of 1.10. 

So it seems that REZ is a rifler that'll consistently frag and makes his shots count when he gets the chance (as noted by his hs%). Occasionally, he’ll clutch, win opening encounters, and get multi-kill rounds. 

hampus is currently the in-game leader (and sometimes lurker) for NIP. In 2021, he posted a solid impact rating at 1.18, but a poor KAST rating at ~66%. He owns a 1.01 KDR overall so far.

As I've mentioned before, the KAST statistic is slightly more individual-oriented, whereas the impact rating is slightly more team-oriented. For example, KAST is based on the number of kills you have, your assists (which can help your ADR or team), and your own survival rate. You could be getting kills consistently then, but a lot of them might be less impactful compared to winning more opening duels or clutches. You might also be surviving a lot, but rarely do you pick up rifles or AWPs from the opposing team. Lurkers though might have a lower KAST rating compared to other roles since they tend to isolate themselves throughout the map (less trades on both ends, for example). To be fair though, getting traded (from KAST) is impact-oriented, as some kills open up a site and give you an easy plant. And, sometimes when you do survive onto the next round, you're able to pass on your weapon. 

Impact rating, on the other hand, not only measures kills, but the impact of those kills on your enemies and your teammates. A 1v1 clutch, for example, wins the round. Having multi-kills doesn’t necessarily win rounds, but it makes it much easier to do so. Rather than saying one is better over the over, the truth is, you need both, or at least a close balance between the two.

So even with a below-average KAST rating, players, like hampus, can make up for it with a solid IPR. Since his OKR wasn’t great last year, the only thing left to boost his IPR was his multi-kills and clutches. A good IPR can also reflect, to an extent, how good a player’s awareness is. A lot of impact kills, for example, happen when your enemies group up, and try to take ahold of a site. When you’re aware of these strategies, you put yourself in a better position to get more impactful frags such as multi-kills and win more rounds essentially.

All in all, hampus seems like the type of player that relies more on his game sense than aim, and that can still be worthwhile for most teams.

NIP achievements

Ninjas In Pyjamas is a Swedish esports organization founded in 2000. In 2012, they formed a CS:GO roster consisting of f0rest, GeT_RiGhT, friberg, Fifflaren and Xizt. As for their achievements, in 2017, they defeated FaZe 3:2 for the top spot in the Intel Extreme Masters XII ($129,000). They also won the StarLadder StarSeries S2 against G2 ($130,000/$300,000).

9. Liquid

One of the most clutch players in CS:GO history. 

For 2022, Liquid made significant roster changes by adding oSee (AWPer), shox (rifler), and nitr0 (rifler). Stewie2k, Grim, and Fallen were released beforehand.

So the current lineup entering 2022 looks like this (in no particular order): 

1. Nitr0 

2. NAF 

3. EliGE

4. shox 

5. oSee. 

Coach: adreN.

Let’s take a closer look at each players' performance thus far.

I suspect Liquid kept NAF and Elige because of their consistency. Take, for example, their overall ADR sitting around 80 and 1.10- 1.15 KDR. Their 1v1 clutch rate difference at the moment is 100+, meaning they have 100 more wins than losses thus far. So if we put this all together, we can get a better idea of their performance, namely, riflers that consistently get kills, deal a lot of damage, and often win their respective 1v1 battles. 

Nitr0 actually played for Liquid before, starting in 2015. In 2021, however, he pursued a career in Valorant after being signed by 100 Thieves.

Looking at some of his overall CS:GO stats, his K/D sits at 1.03 (decent), ADR at 72 (below average), and DPR, or deaths per round, at .66 (solid). The latter might explain why his ADR is subpar. Regardless of whether this is a worthy trade-off or not, sometimes it’s better to run away than to engage in an encounter.

There is some cause for concern, however when you look at Nitr0’s 2020 stats. It’s one thing to take a break from CS:GO (2021 in his case), it’s another to perform poorly the year before (and of course, this is nothing against Nitr0 as a person). 

In 2020, he had a KDR of .86, ADR of~63, and an impact rating of .78. On the flip side, this may have just been an off-year for him, as his K/D normally sits at 1 and his overall 1v1 clutch rate is still at a solid 63% or so. So, even if he’s not getting kills consistently, at the very least, he’s making a positive impact for his team via 1v1 encounters. 

oSee (AWPer) was recently traded from Extra Salt. His overall KDR is 1.19, but in 2021, it jumped to 1.41. That’s close to averaging 3 kills every 2 deaths! His KAST (% of rounds in which the player either had a kill, assist, survived or was traded) in 2021 was at 76%, which is extremely high. In fact, the player with the highest KAST rating overall thus far currently goes to sh1ro, sitting at 76%.

oSee seems to have had a breakout year in 2021, even with his solid performance beforehand. He’s certainly made a positive impact on his team by consistently contributing in some shape or form. This can be something as simple as him surviving and saving an AWP for the next round (partly noted by his low DPR) and his exceptional OKR (Opening Kill Ratio) at 1.39 overall.

Shortly after shox was released by Vitality, Liquid signed the French prodigy. What stands out about him is his 1v1 clutch rate, with a 200+ difference. So if we take his 463 wins thus far and divide them by his total opportunities, or 722, we get a 1v1 clutch rate of ~65%, or roughly 13 wins out of every 20 encounters! In 2021, he also averaged a 70% win rate from his 1v1 clutches.

His KDR sits roughly at 1.00-1.10, meaning he’s getting kills consistently. Understandably, we may want to consider his transition from Vitality to Liquid and whether that has a positive impact or not. Nevertheless, shox has proven himself as one of the most clutch players in CS:GO history.

Liquid’s achievements

In 2015, Liquid took its first steps into the CS:GO pro scene. In fact, Nitr0 was one of the first players signed, along with adreN (now coach of Liquid), daps, FugLy, and NAF. Believe it not, Liquid once had their hands on s1mple, but eventually gave him away to Natus Vincere. 

In 2016, Liquid became the first NA team to reach a CS:GO Major Grand Final at the ESL One: Cologne. They also set a record-breaking 63 day completion of the Intel Grand Slam, winning the IEM Sidney of 2019, Dreamhack Masters Dallas of 2019, ESL Pro League S9 Finals, and ESL One Cologne of 2019. Moreover, they defeated ENCE 3:0 at the Intel Extreme Masters XIV in Chicago/2019 ($125,000/$250,000).

As for something more recent, Liquid won 4th place in the Blast Premier in 2021, with the loss to Natus Vincere as the knockout blow.

8. FURIA

Currently one of Brazil's best riflers.

Furia Esports (CS:GO) is a Brazilian organization founded in 2017. The team is currently located in the U.S. In early 2022, Furia acquired saffe (AWPer) from paiN Gaming after releasing junior. Furia also parted ways with VINI mid-January. 

So the current lineup entering 2022 looks like this (in no particular order): 

1. arT

2. yuurih

3. KSCERATO

4. saffee

5. drop

Coach: guerri

Let’s take a closer look at each players' performance thus far.

arT is well known for his aggressive playstyle as an AWPer. Unfortunately, this didn’t translate too well in 2021, as he posted a .96 KDR along with a high .71 DPR. Furthermore, his OKR, or opening kill ratio, was below 1. 

However, if we look at his overall impact rating or even from 2021, it’s pretty solid. This means he’s getting more multi-kills, open kills, and clutches than usual. It seems that he’s not afraid to go out there and constantly fight by himself or with his teammates. The only problem with this is if your playstyle becomes one-sided (whether you’re too aggressive or passive), your opponents can catch on fairly quickly. There’s nothing wrong with being aggressive or passive in-game, however, even to an extreme at times, but only if it’s working. 

Overall, I believe if arT can mix up his timing and positioning a bit more, he can still keep his aggressive playstyle while racking up more impact frags and opening duels.

yurrih is one the solid pieces for FURIA. In 2021, he owned an ADR of 81, KDR of 1.13, and DPR of .64. His KAST and impact rating in 2021 was decent, but it could be better. This may imply that he was getting kills consistently, but less impactful ones, such as clutches or multi-kills. Nevertheless, he still deals a lot of damage and contributes a kill close to every round or so, with a KPR at .76 overall. 

Looking further into his overall ratings, yurrih’s impact and KAST rating are still strong. Throughout his career, he owns an ADR of 84.5, KDR of 1.19, and impact rating of 1.16. Thus, he’s an exceptional rifler based on his overall consistency and frequent impact frags.

In 2021, KSCERATO owned a 1.21 KDR alongside a 48% headshot rate. His ADR is similar to yurrih, at 80 or so. What’s cool about him is that he seems pretty agile as a rifler, given his low DPR. He’s solid in pistol rounds as well, ranking 11th best given his KDR at 1.27 so far. If we look at some of his overall stats, he owns a solid ~63% 1v1 clutch rate, a great 1.38 OKR, and a subpar 1.09 IPR.

If I had to make an educated guess, based on his stats, I’d assume that KSCERATO is a solid rifler with high survivability, consistent frags, and performs better on a 1v1 basis (or isolating enemies).

saffee was an AWPER for paIN gaming until recently being traded. He had plenty of success there, as noted by his stats and impact frags. Overall, he owns 1.54 OKR and a 1.35 KDR. He survives a lot too, sporting a .61 DPR. If that’s not enough, he currently offers one of the highest KPR’s, at .82. His 1v1 clutch rate is decent, sitting at ~57% so far. saffee posted similar numbers in 2021, with an IPR of 1.30 and KPR of .82. When you take in all these stats, alongside his solid KAST rating, it feels like saffee often puts himself in the right spot at the right time.

In mid 2021, drop was promoted to Furia Esports from Furia Academy. His stats are slightly above average, with a K/D of 1.01 and DPR of .63 in 2021. He does however, own the highest hs% on the team, sitting at 53% overall. So when he’s shooting, it’ll usually leave a mark. Based on these stats, it seems that drop has the potential to deal a lot of damage as a rifler while surviving at a high rate. If he can boost his impact rating, then that can go a long way for him and his teammates.

FURIA's achievements

Furia participated in various A-S Tier events, winning either 1st or 2nd place. For example, in 2020, they defeated 100 Thieves 3:0 in the ESL Pro League S12 NA ($77,500/$225,000). And during the same year, they defeated Liquid twice during the Dreamhack Summer and Spring Series. They won 1st place in all three of these events. 

7. Heroic 

Heroic's lineup entering 2022. 

Heroic is a Danish esports organization founded in 2016. There were no changes to Heroic’s lineup entering 2022. Last year, they did replace niko and b0rup though. So their current lineup looks like this (in no particular order):

1. cadiaN

2. refrezh

3. stavn

4. TeSeS

5. sjuush

Coach: Xizt    

Let’s take a closer look at each player’s performance so far.

cadian is an AWPer and currently, the in-game leader for Heroic. Looking at his stats last year, we see an excellent 1v1 clutch rate close to 70%.  His OKR is also solid, sitting at 1.26. Based off his 1.05 impact rating (decent),  ~71% KAST (decent), .67 KPR (decent), ~71 ADR (poor) .60 DPR (great), and number of opening encounters (about 900; from the OKR), it seems safe to say that cadiaN is a fairly conservative AWPer.

Sometimes, a more conservative playstyle allows you to survive more, but be less involved with your team (e.g. rotating late, or fewer trades). That’s not to say that his game sense is mediocre, given his OKR, clutch rate and KDR above 1. It could be that while cadiaN is constantly getting kills, they’re just not coming in bunches. Or perhaps he needs to engage in more opening encounters. Some AWPers also use a heavy hit and run approach where they get a kill, but often fall back instead of re-peeking (for a potential multi-kill round). Nevertheless, he seems to thrive at tracking enemies in succession.  

Overall, cadiaN is a solid choice for an AWPer thanks to his frags, survivability, clutch factor, and strong game sense.

refrezh is an aim-oriented rifler thanks to his ~50% headshot rate and decent 1.03 rating. In 2021, he posted a subpar IR of .97, KAST of ~71%, KPR of .66, and solid DPR of .64. So he’s essentially getting plenty of single kills while surviving at a high rate. His overall stats are similar, with his ADR going up to 75. With an aim like his, I'm sure he can easily increase his ADR from last year (64) and hopefully add more impact frags to his resume. 

stavn is another rifler for Heroic that offers a solid survival rate and KPR. A decent KPR could imply a few things and then some. For one, if you’re consistently getting a kill every round, then that usually means you have an idea of where encounters will take place (also related to game sense). It could also mean that you’re dealing decent damage since you’re getting kills in the first place. And it might, but not always, imply that you have a more effective and/or aggressive playstyle, since you are willing to engage in such encounters (along with a higher ADR).

Interestingly, stavn’s DPR in 2021 was quite low, sitting at .66, along with 900 or so opening encounters (OKR), which is somewhat mediocre for a rifler (not that it’s a bad thing). Nevertheless, it’s still possible to have an aggressive playstyle even without engaging in many opening encounters; instead, you might just end up hunting enemies down as soon as one dies or as the clock dwindles down.

On the other hand, it’s plausible that stavn does in fact, have a more conservative playstyle, given his low DPR and fairly small OKR sample size. What’s strange is that his headshot percentage is somewhat low, at ~43% overall, and yet he’s got a solid KPR and ADR. Putting this all together, my guess is that he’s able to make up for it with his exceptional game sense, allowing him to maneuver or position himself for the kill. These kills, however, are usually 1 by 1, or 1 per round, since his impact rating is barely above average. Having good awareness also allows you to evade danger more often, which may be the result of his stout DPR.

Overall, stavn is a rifler that’ll get you consistent kills, survive often, and use his awareness over aim to gain the upper hand. Based on his stats, I think he has a fairly conservative playstyle, but I could be wrong.

Out of all the players in the Heroic lineup, TeSes owns the highest overall headshot rate at ~55%. In 2021, he posted  a decent KDR of 1.04, and a subpar IP/KAST/KPR of 1.8, ~71%, and .69, respectively. Like refrezh, he seems to be another solid aim oriented rifler for Heroic. Every now and then, he’ll get impact kills, assists, and trades or get traded. 

So if you want a player that’ll get you kills consistently, thanks largely to his superb aim, TeSes is your guy.

sjuush, like TeSes and refrezh, is a rifler with terrific aim, boasting an overall headshot percentage of 53%. In fact, 3 out 5 players in Heroic’s lineup average a 50% overall headshot rate or higher. Looking at his other stats, we see sjuush has an average IPR and ADR, but a decent KAST, KPR, and DPR. This could mean that most of his impact is on an individual level, or per kill basis. His low DPR usually means that (or any player for that matter) he’s often able to save his current or opponent’s weapon onto the next round. And his overall KDR of 1.07 (1.04 in 2021) suggests that he’s able to get kills frequently and survive as well. 

Heroic’s achievements

The most recent major event Heroic took part in was the PGL Stockholm Challenge of 2021. There, they won 3rd/4th place alongside Gambit ($140,000/$1,000,000). Earlier that same year, they defeated Gambit 3:2 in the ESL Pro League S13 ($200,000/$750,000). In 2020, they defeated Vitality 3:0 in the ESL One: Cologne Online ($150,000/$325,000).

6. Virtus.pro

Virtus. pro's lineup entering 2022.

Virtus.pro is a Russian esports organization formed in 2003. They are widely known for their teams in Dota 2, and CS:GO. Although there are no recent roster changes, they acquired FL1T in 2021. As a result, SANJI was benched. 

So their current lineup entering 2022 looks like this (in no particular order):

1. buster 

2. FL1T

3. Qikert

4. Jame

5. YEKINDAR

Coach: dastan

Let’s take a closer look at each player’s performance so far.

buster has played for VP since 2019. Throughout that time, he’s maintained a KDR of 1.05 or so. 2021 was a bit of a down year for him, but he’s consistently fragging nevertheless. His 1v1 clutch rate resides around 53% overall, and his DPR is at a stellar .62. If you look at his IR, ADR, and KPR in 2021, it drastically dropped from his usual/average numbers. Overall, he’s still a solid rifler for VP based on his frags and survivability.

FL1T was a late acquisition in 2021 for VP. During that year, he posted some pretty solid numbers with an ADR close to 85, KPR of .75, and an IR of 1.14. His overall KDR sits at 1.13 with a 62% clutch rate. Going by the numbers, he seems to be a pretty impactful rifler that not only gets kills, but deals a lot of damage. His KAST rating might be a bit low given the fact that he’s a lurker or so (as he’s not being traded as often).

Overall, the numbers look decent for Qikert, especially with a 65% clutch rate. 2021, however, was a bit of a downfall for him. For starters, he posted an OKR at .87 and impact rating close to .90. Although his DPR and headshot percentage was pretty good, standing at .63 and ~57% respectively. In fact, his overall headshot rate is about 56%. So going into this year, we might expect him to be a solid standalone rifler that can quickly rack up kills and potentially deal massive damage. Hopefully, he can improve his impact or even KAST rating by then.

Jame is arguably one of the best and most conservative AWPers in today’s game. In fact, the term, “jame time” comes from his decision to save an AWP every 1vX scenario or so. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though, as noted by his .55 DPR (2nd lowest overall; sh1ro is 1st). That also contributes to his outstanding KDR, at ~1.31. So while he’s a consistent fragger, he’s also extremely nimble as he can maneuver his way out of danger.

Interestingly, if we look at his OKR, it’s close to 1.80. And, in 2021, it was 2.29! That’s crazy! To be fair, he only had about 825 opening encounters in 2021 (based on kills/deaths, assuming running away doesn’t count) compared to s1mple’s 1,201, ZywOo’s 1,071’s, and arT’s (arguably the most aggressive AWPer today) 1,603. So although he’s not engaging in opening duels as much, he’s had success in doing so. Furthermore, he currently holds one of the highest opening encounter success rates overall at ~64%. And as I mentioned before, winning more opening duels often means you’re putting yourself in the right spot at the right time, which has some correlation to better game sense, or Jame sense, in this case. 

Last, but not least, we have YEKINDAR. Out of everyone in the lineup, YEKINDAR owns the highest overall headshot percentage at ~59%. This partially contributed to his ADR at ~83 and KPR at .75. In 2021, he had an incredible ~61% headshot rate, and impact rating of 1.36 (s1mple’s overall IP is ~1.36, to give you an idea of how good that is). While his OKR was decent at 1.1, he had close to 1,800 opening encounters last year. His DPR was also a bit high, along with a lower KAST rating at 68%.  

If we take all this into account, alongside the fact that he’s an entry fragger (or so), we have a very aggressive rifler with good aim that’s not afraid to die. Given that his IPR is high and his OKR is above one, it could also mean that he’s catching enemies off guard with his aggressive playstyle, which in turn, reflects the effectiveness of his playstyle or better game sense than the norm.

Virtus.pro achievements

In 2021, VP won 2nd place in the Intel Extreme Masters XV ($180,000/1,000,000). And in 2020, they defeated OG for first place in the Flashpoint S2 League ($500,000/$1,000,000).

5. Vitality

Vitality's lineup entering 2022.

In late 2021, Vitality parted ways with shox and benched Kyojin. In January 2022, they signed dupreeh, Magisk, and zonic (coach) for the upcoming season. Dupreeh and Magisk, as you may know, were part of an iconic Astralis team back in the day. So their current lineup is as follows (in no particular order):

1. apEX

2. dupreeh

3. Magisk

4. ZywOo

5. misutaaa

Coach: zonic

Let’s take a closer look at each player’s performance so far.

2021 was a bit of an off-year for apEX. His KDR, for example, was below 1 and his OKR was at .76. He did manage a 1v1 clutch above 50% though. His 1.01 IP and ADR of ~78 are, at best, mediocre. If his impact kills did not come from opening kills, then it came from his clutches, albeit 26 wins with 20 losses, and multi-kills as well. So occasionally, he’ll put himself in the right spot for an impactful multi-kill round. Also, as a support player every now and then, it may be easier to get multi-kills if you have your entry fragger going into a site first. Not to take anything away from him. 

His overall stats are much better, at least compared to the 2021 season, with a headshot rate at 52%, KDR at 1.02, and OKR close to 1. Putting this all together, apEX seems like a rifler that relies heavily on his aim and can clutch from time to time, whether that be from 1v1’s or multi-kill rounds.

Throughout his career dupreeh’s had a good impact rating 1.15. This means, as you probably already know, more clutches, multi-kills, and opening kills than the norm. In 2021, however, it went down to 1.06, which is still modest. He was able to maintain a K/D above 1 though, along with a ~51% headshot rate and DPR of .65. Although he’s not posting the stellar numbers he had with Astralis, dupreeh is still a solid rifler nevertheless. 

If we take his 1.06 rating (from the 2.0 rating system), alongside the stats aforementioned, we might deduce that dupreeh, like apEX, relies frequently on his aim to win encounters, survives often, and once in a while, make an impact on the team (aside from consistently getting one kill per round or death).

Magisk, alongside dupreeh, was a former player for Astralis during their iconic run. During that span, he posted some pretty solid numbers, averaging a KDR above 1 and a DPR around .65. Last year though, his numbers were subpar. While he maintained his usual DPR, his KDR went down to 1 exactly and his KAST dropped below 70%. He still has a 1v1 clutch rate above 50% though and his overall OKR is decent at 1.12. Perhaps what stands out the most is his headshot percentage, at ~48%. Gauging by the numbers then (overall and in 2021), Magisk seems to be a fairly impactful rifler that relies heavily on his aim to outduel his opponents.

ZywOo is arguably the 2nd best CS:GO player in the world, aside from s1mple. Take, for example, his overall ADR at ~89, his Impact Rating at 1.46, KPR at .85, DPR at .62, KDR at 1.38 and 68% 1v1 clutch rate (the list goes on). When you put all this together, it not only demonstrates his superb aim, but keen awareness to get kills like that in the first place. 

As I touched on before, in order to have a good IP rating, you need to know when and where to position yourself, in addition to having good aim. For example, by using an off-angle or spot you haven’t been in (at all or for awhile), you put yourself in a better position to get multi-kill rounds, especially if the situation dictates it, e.g. rush/stack on B tunnels. 

The same thing goes for 1v1 clutch scenarios. Player’s don’t just rely on their aim to win these types of battles, but their awareness of the situation, as to where to hide, or where their opponent might be. If you planted on B (out in the open) from Inferno for example, and know your opponent is coming from CT spawn, you can occasionally hide somewhere around there to catch your opponent off-guard, if you have the time.

Going back to ZywOo, his Opening Kill Ratio (1.60) also correlates with his exceptional awareness. By positioning yourself well early on during a round, you’ll have more opportunities for opening encounters, moreso in your favor. This can be something as simple as occasionally peeking banana on Inferno with the right spawn or peeking through a gap from a smoke. 

In 2021, ZywOo posted similar numbers compared to his overall stats. For instance, he had an IP rating and KDR of 1.37, DPR of .60, KPR of .82, OKR of 1.57 (or about 2 opening kills per death), and a 1v1 clutch rate close to 70%. 

Putting all this together, and even aside from his stats, ZywOo truly is a gifted and outstanding AWPer who not only gets kills, but makes them count; all encompassed by his tremendous game sense. Sometimes, we talk about players either having good in-game awareness or aim, but for ZywOo, he’s able to use both with ease.

misutaaa often plays as an entry fragger or so. His overall stats are below average to satisfactory. If we take a look at his KDR, IP rating, and KPR, and, it goes from .97 to. 96 to .64. This implies that he’s not really getting kills on a consistent basis, and even when he does, they’re not as impactful. In his defense though, going first into a site as an entry fragger can be tough to handle, since you’re generally the first to be spotted.

In 2021, his stats were somewhat better, with an IP rating and KDR at .98, KPR at .66, and a DPR at .67 (latter is the same as his overall). It can be surprising to see a low DPR for entry fragger, as they’ll occasionally take one for the team. My guess is that, since roles in CS:GO are fluid, and not constant, he doesn’t entry frag as much as other players do. In fact, his total opening encounters, based on his kills/deaths, sits around 800, which is fairly conservative in my book. If you look at Niko’s however, he had about 1,400 in 2021 as a rifler.  

On a more positive note, misutaaa’s headshot rate was close to 54% in 2021, so he can definitely out aim his opponents. Furthermore, his overall 1v1 clutch rate stands at ~73% and last year it went up to ~77%! By compiling his 2021 and overall stats, I’d say misutaaa is a solid rifler that relies heavily on headshots to get kills and make an impact. His modest game sense, also deserves some credit, thanks to his high 1v1 clutch rate and moreover, clutch factor.

Before I move on, I’d like to mention how game sense can change from one scenario to another. In misutaaa’s case, it seems that his game sense skyrocketed in 1v1 scenarios, but not as much for other impact kills, such as opening kills, and multi-kills. One possible explanation for this is that, in 1v1’s, you don’t have to worry about anyone else, but just one enemy. 

Another reason is based on the fact that 1v1’s can heavily favor one side over the other, since the latter either has to defuse the bomb, kill the t, do both, or plant the bomb, plant before time runs out, and so on. 

One last reason I’ll give is based on the confinement of an area. So in 1v1’s, especially with a plant, or after the round has dwindled down for so long (gaining a good amount of information about the enemy/enemies), you might have a better idea of where your opponent is, making it easier to track them down or hide where you need to.

Vitality’s achievements

In late 2021, Vitality won 3rd place in the Blast Premier World Final ($120,000/1,000,000). In 2020’s Blast Preimer Finals, however, they defeated Astralis 2:1 for 1st place ($225,000/$425,000). 

According to HLTV, Vitality is currently ranked as the 4th best CS:GO team in the world. With these new roster changes, we’ll see where it takes them.

4. Gambit

Gambit's lineup entering 2022.

Gambit Esports is a Russian organization owed by MTS, a Moscow telecommunications company. Their starting lineup consists of fairly young players, averaging 22 years old. They did not acquire or trade any players in 2022 thus far. So their starting lineup for the new season looks like this: 

1. HObbit

2. interz

3. Ax1Le

4. sh1ro

5. nafany

Coach: groove

Let’s take a closer look at each player’s performance so far.

HObbit had a breakout year in 2021, posting fantastic numbers. With an overall 1.18 rating, he recorded a solid IPR (1.21), KAST (72%), and KPR (.74). By combining a strong IPR and KAST rating, one could deduce that HObbit’s performance is exceptional on an individual and team level (or impact).

As I’ve touched on before, KAST measures kills, assists, and survival rate, leaning more towards a player’s individual performance on a team (assists/trades could be either or). Impact rating on the hand, measures the impact of those kills, from getting the first kill to 1+ kills to clutches. To be fair, there are some impactful kills that the IPR does not measure, such as ones that turn a 3v2 into a 2v1. Nonetheless, IPR does a good job of covering most bases. 

Going back to HObbit, his 1v1 clutch rate and OKR in 2021 was ~57% and 1.17, respectively (decent). What’s left to boost his IPR then must have been his number of multi-kills. And when you’re getting a lot of multi-kill rounds, not only are you making an impact, but your game sense is also on display by putting yourself in the right spots at the right time, roughly speaking.

Overall, HObbit owns a 1.11 K/D Ratio, an ADR of 80, an IPR of 1.13, and a KAST Rating of 71.5%. So while these numbers are lower than his most recent performance, he still shows potential as an uprising superstar. 

Taking all this into account, HObbit’s is an exceptional rifler thanks to his consistent frags, high survival rate, impact kills, and stellar game sense.

2021 was not the best year for interz, posting some pretty poor numbers. His performance against NAVI in the Blast Premier World Final was also one to forget, averaging about 10 kills per match (3 total). 

On the bright side, he did have a super-efficient DPR at .58, a KAST rating around 73%, and a 1v1 clutch rating of ~63% last year. His high KAST probably means that he was getting traded or survived frequently.

Unfortunately, his KDR in 2021 was below 1 and his KPR was .55. So while his KAST rating was strong, he wasn't getting enough kills per round. Also, his assists per round was below average to average, sitting at .12 compared to .15 or above (so 15% of the rounds or more), in my book. 

His overall numbers are about the same, with a strong 50% headshot clip and ~60% clutch rate. Currently, he owns the highest overall percentage of support rounds (KAST, but without the K) at ~25%. 

Taking all this into account, I’d say interz is still a promising rifler given his excellent aim, support role, and survivability. However, he still needs to work on his impact frags, and perhaps game sense for the upcoming season.

Ax1le had a remarkable year in 2021, recording an overall rating of 1.17. What stands out the most is his K/D ratio at 1.18, OKR at 1.21 (close to 1,400 opening encounters), and 1v1 clutch rating close to 70%. Like HObbit, he provided both a strong IPR and KAST rating. And get this. He’s only 19! 

His overall stats are a notch below his performance in 2021, but strong nevertheless. His KDR, for example, was at 1.16 with a 1.14 IPR. 

Considering the numbers, Ax1le is a top-tier rifler that not only gets kills, but often makes an impact, from 1v1 clutches to opening encounters. But, there’s more. Even with his semi to aggressive playstyle (based on his number of opening encounters), he’s still able to survive frequently.

Lastly, as I’ve touched on throughout this article time and time again, having any sort of playstyle that allows you to consistently seize more opening encounters can generally be attributed to better game sense, as in Ax1le’s case.

sh1ro stands out as one of the best AWPers in the game today. In 2021, he posted the 2nd highest K/D ratio at 1.45 and 1st overall at 1.44. Aside from frags, sh1ro also offers the highest survival rate overall at .53 deaths per round. 

But, I’m not done yet. He currently boasts the highest KAST rating at ~76% and one of the highest success rates overall in opening duels (based on the OKR) at ~66%. 

Looking at his 2021 stats, he maintained his OE success, but at a higher clip, sitting at an astonishing ~70%. Interestingly, he only had about 1,000 opening encounters or so last year, but his OKR was doubled from what you’ll normally see, sitting at 2.36. This tells me that he’s either not as aggressive as one might think, that he tends to play more aggressively as the round draws to an end, or that he plays super aggressive initially, but settles down. Settling down, for example, would be like saving an AWP on a 1v5. At the same time, a less aggressive playstyle overall would probably contribute to a lower DPR. Regardless, each player has their own playstyle that generally works for them. 

Given all these factors, sh1ro truly is one of the best players in the game. But, to summarize, he performs exceptionally well on an individual and team basis, given his impact and KAST ratings. And somehow, even though he’s in the middle of all the action, he still manages to often getaway. Pretty fascinating. Let’s not forget about his remarkable game sense either, as the numbers seem to imply, based on his ability to avoid certain death, position himself for the kill, and regularly produce impact kills.

nafany is generally the entry fragger for Gambit. His 2021 stats seem decent, with his IPR standing out at 1.16. This mostly stems from his 63% clutch rate along with a high number of multi-kill rounds. His other ratings, such as the KAST and KPR are average, at best. Unfortunately, nafany’s OKR was at .086 with about 2,000 encounters in 2021! That’s one reason why his KDR was low at .097 along with a decent DPR of .70.

When you have that many opening encounters (more than s1mple and NiKo), it’s probably safe to say that he’s one of the most aggressive players in the game. True, you can get many opening encounters without rushing or lurking, but at the same time, it’s one of the most effective ways to catch your opponent off guard, assuming your timing is right. 

Thus, it seems like some aggressive playstyles work better than others. In nafany’s case, it wasn’t completely bad, but it could have been better. In fact, his solid 1.16 IPR in 2021 could be attributed to his aggressive demeanor (and aim, with a 51% hs overall), just not as much from opening kills. So there is some potential from his playstyle that transitions into frags and solid game sense.

Gambit Achievements

In late 2021, Gambit won 2nd place in the Blast Premier: World Final (lost to NAVI 1:2; $250,000/$1,000,000). In the 2021 Spring Finals however, they defeated Navi 2:0 ($225,000/$425,000). During the same year they also defeated Virtus.pro 3:1 in the Intel Extreme Masters XV ($400,000/$1,000,000).

3. FaZe

FaZe's lineup entering 2022.

For their 2022 roster, Faze benched olofmeister and added ropz. So their lineup looks like this (in no particular order):

1. ropz

2. karrigan

3. Twistzz

4. broky

5. rain

Coach: RobbaN

Let’s take a closer look at each players' performance thus far.

ropz spent most of his professional career with MOUZ, but FaZe eventually got a hold of him. Throughout his career, he’s maintained a KDR of about 1.20, a headshot rate at 50% or above, and a KPR close to .75 (or a kill ~75% of the time/per round). Looking at his overall stats, we see a decent impact rating at 1.10, ADR at 79, KAST at 72.5%, and a solid DPR at .62. 

As I mentioned before, a below-average ADR isn’t the end of the world if you can survive a lot, or at least when you or your team needs you to. However, a lower KAST or impact rating could mean that a player is not positioning himself as effectively, needs to rotate from one site to another more effectively, loses crucial aim duels, misses opportunities, and so on. A lot of multi-kills, for example, happen in the heat of the moment, e.g. executing a rush on B, pushing a site from similar spots, holding similar spots, etc. Whether you’re T or CT, you can use this knowledge to your advantage.

A lower KAST could also mean you’re not being traded as often as you should. 

That said, both KAST and the impact rating reflect your game sense or awareness, to an extent. That is, when you consistently put yourself in the right spot at the right time (and disrupt your opponent’s timing) you’re more likely to, depending on the situation, survive, get traded, have more multi-kill rounds, get clutches, assists, and so on. So aside from averaging a kill per round or death, impact frags are crucial as well. 

To be fair though, lurkers (like ropz, at times) do have a tough role to handle, especially when they're outnumbered and no one is close to back them up. And some kills outside of clutches, opening, and multi-kills can also be impactful (e.g. one that opens up a site in the middle of a round). So while KAST and Impact Rating are helpful, they don’t tell the whole story.

Also, last year, ropz boosted his IPR to 1.19 compared to 1.10 overall. 

To sum up, ropz is one of the best riflers out there thanks to his ability to get headshots and kills on a consistent basis. With due time, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he increased his overall impact and KAST ratings given his potential.

karrigan is well known for his tenure with MOUZ and FaZe. Currently, he serves as their in-game leader.

Looking at his 2021 stats, we see a K/D of .82 (poor), an ADR of ~69 (below average), and an impact rating close to 1 (average). It could be that he’s not positioning himself well throughout the game, picking the wrong battles, or rotating too late, for example. On the bright side, he’s maintained a solid 60% 1v1 clutch rate throughout his career. 

Ideally, in-game leaders have superb aim and awareness. But, they can still serve a vital role even with just the latter. So if karrigan, despite his individual performance, can consistently predict his opponent’s behavior, execute strategies effectively, and take the appropriate countermeasures, alongside his teammates, he can lead FaZe a long way.

twistzz could be regarded as a modern-day ScreaM, with an overall headshot percentage at ~62% (8th best overall). His .62 DPR compared to a .77 ADR might imply a more cautious approach or playstyle. With a decent impact rating at 1.08, KDR of 1.18, and KAST close to 74%, it seems that he’s getting consistent kills and surviving often while having some impact frags every now and then. 

Moreover, what’s great about having a high headshot % is not just the damage output, but having damage (and better placement) that kills faster. So even if you don’t spot your opponent right away, and you take damage, for example, you can still survive the encounter with an instant headshot. It essentially gives you more leeway when you’re occasionally caught off guard. You don’t have to spray down as much as well (which would take more time to kill). Thus, twistzz is a lethal headshot weapon and a valuable asset for FaZe’s upcoming season.

broky is currently the main AWPer for FaZe. While riflers should occasionally engage in opening encounters, AWPers have additional advantages such as damage, distance, and speed (as in the time it takes the shot to travel). Keep this in mind for each AWPer. 

Looking at his opening kill success, he sports a 1.37 OKR and a 1.12 K/D overall. His .61 DPR is tied for 17th best overall, meaning he survives a lot. While his impact and KAST ratings are subpar, he holds a solid ~65% 1v1 clutch rate. Overall then, it seems that he’s getting plenty of kills and surviving at a high rate while a good chunk of his impact kills come from opening kills and 1v1 clutches.

rain is a rifler well known for his time with G2 and FaZe. From 2017-2018, he was ranked as the 4th and 18th best player, respectively. Overall, he owns a 1.03 KDR, 80 ADR, and an astounding ~56% headshot rate. This went up to ~59% in 2021. Moreover, he had close to a ~83% 1v1 clutch rate last year!

Overall, rain maintains a solid impact rating at 1.16 compared to 1.08 last year and a ~62% clutch rate. So by looking at the numbers thus far, alongside an average KAST and KPR, one might glean that he’s a solid rifler who can make an impact every now and then.

FaZe Achievements

This American organization was founded in 2010. It currently consists of players from Denmark, Norway, Canada, Estonia, and Latvia. As for some of their achievements, in 2019 they defeated NIP 2:0 in the Blast Copenhagen Series. The prize pool was $250,000 while the first-place prize was $125,000. In the same year, they defeated Liquid 2:0 in the same series, but in Miami (same amount of money).

2. G2

G2's lineup entering 2022.

G2 is a Spanish Esports organization headquartered in Germany. They were founded in 2013. Some notable players from their CS:GO roster include kennyS (benched), and NiKo. There are a few changes to their roster lineup this year. In 2022, they acquired m0NSEY (AWPer) from Natus Vincere Junior and Alexsib from OG. So starting the year, their lineup is as follows:

1. JACKZ

2. NiKo

3. huNter-

4. Aleksib

5. m0NSEY (rookie; 2022 stats only)

Coach: Swani

Let’s take a closer look at each player’s performance thus far.

Overall, JACKZ’s stats as an entry fragger appear decent, but what really stands out is his headshot percentage at 58%. In fact, in 2021, he posted a 64% headshot rate (close to ScreaM’s 68% overall).

Unfortunately, most of his other stats in 2021 did not fare well. For example, he had a KDR of .86, ADR of roughly 66, IP rating below 1, and KPR of .59. Looking at his OKR and 1v1 clutch rate, we see a .79 ratio and a 55% rate. So not only was he losing encounters consistently, but he was losing out on a lot of potential impact frags as well. This was probably due more to his game sense than aim, since the latter is pretty solid. 

One other note about game sense. As I’ve spoken about before, having it often means you position yourself well throughout the game (whether you choose different spots or the same occasional spots), disrupt your opponent’s timing (such as a delayed rush, or occasional push through a smoke), get trades or traded, execute strategies properly, vary util usage/timing, and so on. In JACKZ’s case, he may have done a few of these things this year, but not all or most, on a consistent basis. At the very least, however, I’d say that his game awareness was solid in 1v1 scenarios, with a clutch rate around 55%. 

So combining his 2021 and overall stats, JACKZ, in my opinion, is still a solid fragger with exceptional aim and a decent clutch factor. He should have a decent amount of impact frags for the upcoming year as well.

Taking a peek at NiKo’s 2021 stats, we see a KDR of 1.19, IP rating of 1.33, an OKR of 1.33, and 1v1 clutch rating close to 70%. Basically, when you put all of this together, you get one of the top riflers in the game. Of course, stats aren’t everything, but they do give you, at the very least, some picture of a player’s skill level. 

Based on his total number of opening encounters in 2021 (1,400; from the OKR), NiKo seems to be a pretty aggressive, but effective rifler. When you combine that with a 50% overall headshot rate, you can take some chances every now and then.

In order to be aggressively effective though, you need to have a pretty good awareness of the situation at hand, since you’re taking more risks, generally speaking. This could be peeking mid-early on from good spawn, pushing through an early smoke, or lurking late in the round, depending on where your opponent might be and their playstyles, more or less. In addition, you’ll need to vary your timing, as NiKo does. So instead of pushing every round, you can wait a few. Instead of pushing on an eco round (which can be highly predictable), you delay the push or hold a site every now and then. And if you do decide to play even more aggressively, you change spots every now and then. 

The only downside (albeit small) to NiKo’s performance in 2021 was his Deaths Per Round at .66, and subsequently his KAST rating at 71%. This could probably be attributed to his aggressive and lurky playstyle. But, this is a small price to pay for his overall stellar performance.

Combining NiKo’s gameplay and stats, one can see he’s arguably the best rifler (or top 3 perhaps) in the game today, thanks to his clutch factor, unique and aggressive playstyle, damage output, and of course, superior aim.

Believe it or not, huNter- and NiKo are actually cousins. On the same team! Pretty cool, if you ask me. 

Backtracking to his performance, we see huNter had some pretty decent stats in 2021, with his KPR (.74) and KDR (1.10) standing out. It’s probably safe to say that he’s not as aggressive as NiKo, with less than 1,000 opening encounters (compared to 1,400). Nevertheless, he can be aggressive from time to time, as some riflers only have about 800 opening encounters or less. yuurih is one example with ~700 in 2021. 

With an OKR of 1.04, ~970 OE’s, and a ~50% hs rate, one can see the correlation with his solid KPR. And with an overall impact rating at 1.24, he’s often getting kills in the right place at the right time. And when you have a good IP rating and KPR, that usually means you have the awareness to anticipate and position yourself well for various encounters throughout the match.

Overall, huNter is an impactful rifler for G2 that should deal plenty of damage and dish out plenty of frags in 2022.

Alexsib is a 24-year-old Finnish rifler and in-game leader for G2. Before that, he played for ENCE and OG. 

His 2021 stats and overall stats are quite similar, sporting a rating close to 1, a KDR below 1, and a KAST of ~71%. Last year, his best stat was a .64 DPR versus a below-average IPR, ADR, and KPR. Unfortunately, his OKR was poor as well, standing at .81. His overall KDR for the year was .93. Alongside that, he had less than 800 opening encounters last year, which tells me he’s a conservative rifler, more or less. 

On a more positive note, his overall 1v1 clutch rating sits at ~57% with a DPR of .65 (thus far). He was also given the role of in-game leader, which, has some correlation with better game sense than the norm.      

Given the fact that he doesn’t have many OE’s, has a decent clutch rate, and serves as an in-game leader, my guess is that Alexsib is the type of player that likes to scour the map for information as long as possible. Instead of consistently pushing his way through, he prefers to wait for his opponent to make the first move and then react. This is similar to anticipating an opening encounter and having it come to you than vice versa. On one hand, the longer the wait, the more information you’ll have. On the other hand, the longer you wait, the more likely something has already occurred (e.g. plant on the other site, not being there to trade, and so on). 

That could also explain why is DPR is pretty solid. Plus, as an in-game leader and solid 1v1 clutch player, one of your main feats is to anticpate what your opponent does. That could be why he was given the role in the first place. 

Moreover, anticipating your opponent’s moves and actually getting the kill can be two different things. In other words, a low KDR doesn’t always mean you have bad game sense, but perhaps just bad aim. For example, if you expect an early push from Hut (Nuke), wait a bit, and then see the t’s coming out, you’ve actually played it right, even if you die. This is more apparent when your opponent slightly hesitates to shoot you, as he or she may have not expected you there. 

Nevertheless, a strong KDR and better game sense does have some correlation with one another from time to time. 

In sum, Alexsib can make up for his stats last year if he makes the right calls as an in-game leader (when necessary) while occasionally grabbing impact frags in 2022.

Born in 2005, m0NESY currently resides in Russia. At only the age of 16, he’s the primary AWPer for G2. Moreover, G2 is arguably the 2nd to 4th best CS:GO team today. Talk about pressure! 

Since this is his rookie year at the highest level of Counter-Strike, I can only mention his stats for early 2022. 

So far, he holds a 1.22 KDR, DPR of .59, KAST of 74%, IPR of 1.07, and KPR of .73. With roughly 135 OE’s thus far (based on the OKR), he maintains a 1.45 opening kill ratio. It’s too early to elaborate on his 1v1 clutch rate, given that he has less than 10 opportunities at the moment.

If we compare his 135 opening encounters right now to sh1ro’s (~90), s1mple’s (~110) and Jame’s (~60), it seems that m0nsey has a fairly aggressive playstyle. What’s surprising though is that he’s able to maintain a pretty stellar DPR at .58. But, to be fair, it’s also easier to escape danger with an AWP, given its range, more or less. Even so, your game sense affects where you play and at what particular time. Some players are also able to move around the map faster, depending on their hops or jump accuracy. Given m0nsey’s aggressive playstyle then (as of now), he’s still able to dance around danger with ease. 

A decent IPR, below average ADR, but strong KPR like m0NSEY could imply that he tends to focus on isolating enemies (intentionally or unintentionally) rather than hunting them down in groups. Moreover, it’s generally easier to isolate enemies with an AWP since you can use the distance to your advantage. Sometimes, you may not decide to re-peek right away. Also, you don’t always keep track of who you’re tracking as long as you’re tracking someone. But ideally, you’re able to read your opponent’s plays and know where they tend to stack up, which in turn, gives you more opportunities for impact or multi-kill rounds. Keep all of these factors in mind when evaluating a player’s performance. 

So based on m0nsey’s performance thus far, he seems like a pretty solid AWPer that can easily isolate his enemies and subsequently, gain the upper hand. Occasionally, he’ll have impact frags, but shifting the man advantage in your favor from one kill here and there can be helpful as well.

G2 achievements

G2 was really close to winning the PGL Major Stockholm in 2021, but unfortunately lost to NAVI 0:2 ($300,000/$2,000,000). Nevertheless, they defeated NIP and Heroic in the process. And in 2020, they tied for 1st place in the Blast Premier Spring ($50,000/$300,000).

1.NAVI

NAVI's lineup entering 2022.

Last, but definitely not least, we have NAVI. As a Ukrainian professional Esports organization, they were founded in 2009, but started playing CS:GO in 2012. Did you know they were the first team to win a CS:GO major without dropping a map? Or that they were the first team to win all Counter-Strike Majors in one year? And in case you’re wondering what NAVI actually means, it’s latin for, “born to win.”

Although there were no roster changes for NAVI in early 2022, G2 acquired m0NESY from Natus Vincere Junior. flamie also became a free agent in late 2021. So their current lineup looks like this:

1. s1mple

2. electroNic

3. BoombI4

4. Perfecto

5. b1t

Coach: B1ad3

Let’s take a closer look at each player’s performance so far.

s1mple is, undoubtedly, (in my book) the best player in the game today. Or perhaps, the best AWPer (if you say sh1ro, that’s fair too). It’s not just his stats, but his semi-aggressive and effective playstyle. But, don’t take my word for it. Watch him play a couple of matches and see how he performs. You want to see kills? No problem. You want someone who can survive rounds? No problem. You want someone who can make a consistent impact on the team? No problem either. As you start to wonder what his weaknesses are, you realize there are little to none. He’s just that good.

I think it’s also safe to say, given his stats, or even outside of his stats, he has better game sense than most. So it’s not like he’s relying heavily on his aim for AWP or rifle kills, but also his positioning. It’s as if he could foresee his enemy’s location with ease. Looking at his 2021 OKR close to 2 and overall OKR at 1.61, one could see how.

Having this kind of awareness depends on various factors (not just opening encounters or early on), but some include: man advantage/disadvantage, how often each side goes to a particular site, utility, number of rounds, and so on. I don’t know what goes on in s1mple’s mind, but I’m sure he takes most, if not all of this into account.

And even though we often think of positioning as holding an angle, it could also mean gradually walking toward an enemy or wide-peeking. If you’re always stationary for example, you remain an easy target. That’s why you see AWPers, like s1mple, move around a lot to escape danger or gradually walk toward an enemy to catch them off guard, every now and then. Are you, for instance, prepared to shoot an enemy that’s holding the B cross on Inferno?  Are you prepared to shoot an enemy that wide peeks you at banana? Or are you prepared to shoot an enemy that’s gradually walking into T spawn on Inferno? Hence, good riflers or AWPers will vary their positioning and timing to try and outduel you, with s1mple’s tactics on another level. 

Digging further into s1mple’s stats last year, we see a IPR of 1.43, ADR of ~88, DPR of .60, KPR of .88, and and KDR close to 1.5. 

With his overall stats, s1mple owns the highest 2.0 Rating thus far, highest ADR, highest KPR, and highest Impact Rating. 

Truly, s1mple is the only one of his kind. He’s the jack of all trades in CS:GO, whether it be clutches, multi-kills, site kills, and so on. Don’t forget his superb game sense either, enabling him to partake in such encounters in the first place.

electroNic is arguably NAVI’s most consistent rifler at the moment. He owns a ~51% headshot rate, IPR of 1.19, OKR of 1.13, and a KPR of .75. He’s basically a headshot fragger with strong in-game awareness. 

His 2021 performance was about the same, with the exception of a lower IPR at 1.15, but slightly better DPR at .64. His KDR was strong as well. Sometimes you’ll see a player with an exceptional DPR but low KDR or vice versa. For electroNic though, he’s able to survive fairly well while fragging at a comfortable rate. While his impact Rating is partially attributed to his 63% 1v1 clutch rate and 1.10 OKR, a lot of credit goes to his number of multi-kill rounds as well.   

As a result, electroNic contributed greatly to NAVI’s success these past few years, and I’m sure he’ll continue to do so.

Looking at Boomb14’s overall stats, we see a Rating of 1.05, based on an IPR of 1.10, KPR of .67, DPR OF .68, and so on. These numbers are satisfactory, at best. That means he’s occasionally getting kills, impact kills, surviving, etc. His 1v1 clutch rate, however, stands at 57%. Anytime you can get a clutch rate above 50%, it usually means you’re doing something right. So props to him.

His 2021 stats, however, took a downfall, with a KDR of .89, IPR of .96, and KPR of .59. 

Putting aside his overall and last year’s stats, Boomb14 had a pretty solid performance during the last two matches of the BLAST Premier World Final of 2021. In the last match against Gambit, for example, he dominated with a 17-9 K-D and an Impact rating of 1.31. And in his previous two matches against Vitality, he had a K-D of 19-10/23-19. In the first map, his ADR went up to 94 and his KAST increased roughly to ~86%. In the second map against Vitality, his IPR skyrocketed to 1.16. Thus, he was making an impact on the team by getting kills at the right time. Eventually, NAVI would go on to win the whole tournament. 

Collectively, I believe Boomb14 is still a sound player that can make a difference on his team every now and then, whether it be clutches, kills per death, multi-kills, and so on.

2021 was a satisfactory year for Perfecto, given his KDR above 1. Unfortunately, his IPR, ADR, and KPR took a turn for the worse, sitting at .84, 66.9, and .60, respectively. On a more positive note, he posted a stellar DPR at .57 and a solid KAST around 75%. Putting those two together, one could speculate that during most rounds, he either got a kill or survived. And sure, saving a pistol doesn’t mean much, but also take into consideration the times when players can steal weapons from their opponents or even save their armor onto the next round. 

While his OKR was above one, he only had about 600 encounters or so in 2021. This may imply that he’s a fairly conservative rifler, or at least, early on. His 1v1 clutch rate was also close to 70%. 

Looking at the overall numbers, we see a KDR of 1.04, DPR of .60, KAST close to 73%, an IPR of .88, and KPR of .62. The last two stats are fairly poor for a rifler, but he is getting kills on a consistent basis. 

So when we take all of this into account, we might say that Perfecto is the type of rifler that’ll get you kills, survive frequently, and clutch often. The downside is that most of those kills won’t have a huge impact, and might just be on a single basis. Nevertheless, he deserves some credit for his consistency and game sense, based on his KDR, clutch rate, and even survival rate. Perhaps he’s better at isolating enemies and trapping them instead of hunting them down in groups. If there’s one rifler like that on a team, I wouldn’t mind at all.

As the newest member on the team, b1t has made an impact and then some. If you thought a 50% headshot rate was good, then you haven’t seen b1t play. In fact, he currently leads all players with the highest HS rate at ~69%, surpassing pros like Twistzz and former pro ScreaM. To be fair, he hasn’t played for long, but he still deserves some credit. 

If we look at his stats last year, we’ll see KDR of 1.13, DPR of .60, KAST of 73%, and OKR at 1.24. That’s good. The downside or at least, what’s mediocre, is his IPR at 1.04, and ADR of 72.5. But, remember, there’s some give and take with a high ADR vs a low DPR, as it’s hard to maintain both. 

His overall stats are similar, with a slightly higher DPR, a modest IPR, and lower KAST rating. Like many good players, he maintains a 1v1 clutch rate above 50%. 

Putting all this together, one might say b1t relies heavily on his aim to gain the advantage. But, looking at his overall opening encounter success (based on the kills/deaths) and DPR, it seems that he knows how to pick and choose his battles, boosting his game sense, if you will. 

As I’ve touched on before, in order to win opening encounters, you need to know where to position yourself, based on each team’s strategy and behavior. Generally speaking, no amount of aim will save you if your enemy spots you from behind. Thanks to b1t’s opening kill success though (via isolating enemies, more or less), he’s able to complement his spectacular aim with pretty solid awareness.

NAVI's Achievements

Oh, where do I start? Aside from the achievements I mentioned earlier, they’ve won so many tournaments (back to back even), including the BLAST World and Fall Finals in 2021, the PGL Major Stockholm in 2021, the ESL Pro League S14 In 2021, and so on (the most they won in a single tournament probably goes to the PGL Major Stockholm, at $1,000,000/$2,000,000). Throughout the team’s history, they’ve made the playoffs 13 times, ahead of Fnatic and NIP. Truly, the best CS:GO team in the world so far. It’ll be exciting to see what they have in store for 2022.

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