wtf do yall mean by the “core”

I swear everyone has different definitions

Some think it means the top 2/3 players on the team(including igl)
Others think it’s the support players
or even the players that have been on the team the longest

Any 3 players of a team

the core is the element of the team that remains unchanged, it can be star players role players or coaching staff alongside players

to me it's just any 2/3 players which were on the same team at any given time

3 players
And one/ two of them should be important ones

3 players (including igl) + hc
i think that is a core

my thoughts on this later...

A core generally means any 2/3 players who have been there at every iteration of a particular team maintaining a continuity and hence help define a team identity.
This site provides a unique 3 letter tag to every team which keep a bare minimum of 3 players from their previous roster going into their new roster.
An example from Indian scene is this team currently with Mogo which has been tagged #WLD for past 3 years now- When you click matches tab you can select a core here .
https://www.vlr.gg/team/matches/14768/mogo-esports/?core_id=7695&page=4

the core are players that remain on the roster for a prolonged time.

OpTic core 🥶