Jeremy Lin, point guard for the Brooklyn Nets, has signed an agreement with China Digital Group (CDC) and Vici Gaming, a Chinese esports club, to create a new Dota 2 team, Team VGJ. In a press release sent to ESPN.com, the team will be comprised of Zheng "Agressif" Sun, Xin "Nono" Wang, Fan "rOtK" Bai, Zhi "hym" Xu and Chao "Fenrir" Lu.
In June, the CDC signed with Jeremy Lin for a global exclusive endorsement of a Dota 2 team. Since Lin's first name begins with the letter J, the CDC decided to name the squad Team VGJ to establish a celebrity brand in esports.
"China Digital Group considers eSports as one of major business of growth in recent years. We'll integrate our celebrity resources and eSports teams to create market value," said Chris Hsu, the CEO of the CDC.
Two players, Xu and Bai, come to VGJ from Vici Gaming proper, while Wang hails from the Reborn squad that fell to TnC in the first round of The International 6 in August. Bolstering the former Vici players are Sun, who played carry for LGD Gaming during the Manila Major and TI6, and Lu, whose brief stint with EHOME led to a fifth/sixth place finish at TI6.
This is Vici Gaming's fourth Dota 2 roster, alongside Reborn, Potential and the core Vici Gaming team. Though some talent for this lineup was taken from the other rosters, this adds another rising roster to the international stage.