The final update to this class of HLTV Prospects sees Džiugas “dziugss” Steponavičius hold on to top spot ahead of his graduation from the list.
The 17-year-old’s status as a future star is all but assured, with his unique skillset as a fragging anchor only helping his perception among top teams.
Teammate Dmytro “dem0n” Myroshnychenko holds on to third in his last entry, too, with longtime number one Kacper “xKacpersky” Gabara in second. Klimentii “kl1m” Krivosheev and Adrian “xelex” Vincze round out the top five, but reverse in order from June.
A full graduate article will follow, so we can move on to some of the other storylines: David “Dawy” Bibik’s Super DraculaN performance sees him back into the top 10 as Inner Circle regain some form, while João “koala” Pfeffer held up at the Major to get back into the top 15.
Nikita “jackasmo” Skyba’s renaissance with fnatic is also continuing after the 19-year-old posted a 1.30 rating in the last month. Adam “Grizz” Golden also had a good month, with a 1.22 rating at FRAG TAP Reloaded, and is the first NA player since Mason “Lake” Sanderson to make the top 20.
Explore the data behind the ranking in this month’s interactive dashboard
The biggest climb this month, though, is reserved for Virtus.pro AWPer Vladimir “b1st” Krasikov, who makes it to 26th having averaged a 1.20 rating in the team’s new lineup.
We’ve also got some debutants: Kristian “kralle” Jensen of MASONIC, CYBERSHOKE Prospects duo Artur “pleynnn” Syzdykov and Maxim “SquEzxc” Grebenko, and Bogdan “ogwizard” Savula — who overtakes teammate Chance “WUMBO” Boyer for the final NA slot in the top 50.
pleynnn and SquEzxc’s performances have been so strong that they have taken their academy lineup three places above the main CYBERSHOKE team on the VRS, and both held up on LAN as they won the LG UltraGear LAN in Almaty.
The top LAN performances since the last update
Stat Attack
This month’s scatterplot centers on how players end up with their Round Swing percentage. When we watch games, we’re drawn to a player’s output: Their frags, damage, and highlight moments.
But to be a truly impactful player, the key is to deal output beyond the cost of your output. In other words, your kills need to swing the needle more than your deaths.
So we have plotted a player’s Swing Added (the swing percentage from their kills, damage, trades, and flash assists) compared to their Swing Deducted (deaths) to show how different a +1.50% Swing player really is.
A player like koala has a reputation for passive play, which is shown here as he clusters next to full-time AWPers. PARIVISION recruit Vyacheslav “slaxejezzz” Vinokurov, meanwhile, is in the Danil “donk” Kryshkovets corner of ultra-high activity in terms of impact added and deducted.
FaZe’s new AWPer Jason “JBOEN” Boe Nielsen has been talked of highly in tier two circles for a while, and charts like this show why: He’s the AWPer furthest to the right in our top 50 prospects, adding the most impact, but is also near the top to show his deaths are not as costly to his team as you might expect.
Top Picks
We will also be making some ‘top picks’ in each role: Last month, we had slaxejezzz and JBOEN, both of which have stepped up to tier-one teams this month.
To try and recreate that success, we’ve picked out CYBERSHOKE Prospects’ two stars, who are surely due a move up the ladder this summer.
We also wanted to shine a light on some known quantities, like Alan “flayy” Krupa who continues to perform his role well with 9INE. He might not be a red-hot insta-buy prospect, but his consistency and 1.16 rating on LAN against top 30 teams suggest he could do a job higher up in a weak AWP market.
Martin “nut nut” Holm Vestergaard has been out of action since ECSTATIC benched their lineup, which makes it a sensible time for the 20-year-old to leave the nest. Jacob “jocab” Nerheden has also been rebuilding since leaving Young Ninjas, and has had a great season with Johnny Speeds.
Finally, Dawy is our top pick for opener after going back-to-back on LAN at BCG Masters and Super DraculaN. He missed out on a move last off-season but, after another six months of development, he is ready to take the next step.
Transfer Updates
HLTV Top 50 Prospects: July 2026
HLTV Prospects factors
weightedRating: Weighted rating against top 50 teams in the last 6 months
formRating: Recency-weighted rating in the last 6 months
roundWinRating: Contributions to round wins in the last 6 months
weightedLAN: Weighted rating on LAN in all of CS2
playoffRating: Weighted playoff rating, based on event tier in all of CS2
evpPoints: EVP score at notable events
Age: Days old. Means a 16yo with the same stats outscores a 20yo
Bold Predictions: How often a player has been shouted out by a top 20 pro
FACEIT ELO: Ranking points on matchmaking platform FACEIT
Previous spotlights
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HLTV Prospects ranking: June 2026
