Paper Rex Benkai Restricted Free Agent & Open to Offers

Paper Rex may be down a member for the VCT 2024 season.

🇰🇷 SEOUL, South Korea — Paper Rex has allowed Benedict ‘Benkai’ Tan to receive offers and opportunities. Benedict has been with Paper Rex since 2020, and was instrumental in transitioning the CS:GO competitive roster to VALORANT. He has worked with the team throughout the 2023… https://t.co/g3dxnr0Dzb

— Paper Rex (@pprxteam) August 31, 2023

Paper Rex and Benkai have announced that the organization will allow Benkai to look for outside opportunities for the VCT 2024 season as a restricted free agent.

The news comes as a surprise given Benkai's history with Paper Rex. After making his debut in 2020, he has been with the organization for almost his entire career. In that time, Benkai played a significant role in Paper Rex's success.

We end our season at #VALORANTChampions with a 🥈 second place finish and we couldn't be more proud of our team and the work they put in.

Thank you to our families for understanding, our friends for believing, and everyone for supporting us on this journey. We stand on the… pic.twitter.com/oQHwRbJPg3

— Paper Rex (@pprxteam) August 26, 2023

As Paper Rex's in-game leader this year, Benkai led Paper Rex to 1st place finishes at the Valorant India Invitational and VCT Pacific League Final prior to Paper Rex benching him in June. Paper Rex would go on to achieve a 3rd place finish at VCT 2023: Masters Tokyo and a 2nd place finish at VCT 2023 Champions (With Evil Geniuses putting a stop to Paper Rex at Masters and Champions).

It would be a shock to see Benkai go. But then again, after a dominant 2022 season, LOUD made significant changes to their VCT 20222 Champions roster. That's just the way it is in Esports.

With Jinggg unable to play in the VCT 2024 season due to needing to complete his National Service, if Benkai also leaves Paper Rex, VCT Pacific's defending champions may have a steep uphill climb next season.