Wise disqualified from ESEA Main due to FLAUNT ban
Drama has hit ESEA Main, as Wise have seen themselves effectively disqualified from the division as recent addition "FLAUNT" received a ban on the ESEA platform for cheating.
The team's record before the ban was 14-2, guaranteeing playoffs, and following overturned results from games FLAUNT played in sees them slump to an 8-8 record. This in itself would leave them out of contention for playoffs, however ESEA has seen fit to completely clean out the team's roster as well, forcing them to start again from the bottom.
FLAUNT released a statement after the ban, attempting to explain why he acted as he did. In essence he was using the cheats as a quick cash grab, intending to help out his parents in their recent legal troubles, as well as stating that he was "very addicted to CSGO" and that was part of the reason for why he reached out to one of his "closest friends that makes cheat[s]".
In FLAUNT's statement, he doesn't go into any details on who else knew about his cheats, only saying that he told Nick "N4j" Norman, the team captain, "it would be a risk having me on the team multiple times". In a reply to his tweet, he alleges that his former ESEA Open team, Team-X, knew about his use of cheats and attempted to "blackmail" him into returning to play with them.
FLAUNT was a recent addition to the Wise roster, one that is drastically different to the one created pre-season, initially brought in as a stand-in in mid-June before being made a permanant addition shortly after. In an expletive-ridden tweet, N4j maintains his innocence and states he was unaware of FLAUNT's malicious activities.
The Wise roster at the end was as follows:
- Nick "N4j" Norman
- Matthew "Cryptic" Whitmore
- "FLAUNT"
- Drake "Exalt" Branly
- Randy "TKC" Akko
The team are still competing in CEVO Main, where FLAUNT has not received a ban, where they currently sit at the top of the North American conference with a 4-1 record. Incoming changes for the team are yet to be announced.