Inductee in Wichita Sports Hall of Fame, 2004
Valentine was Wichita’s first McDonald’s All-American in 1977 playing for a Wichita Heights team which many consider the best prep team in Kansas history. He averaged 26 points for a 23-0 Heights team that clinched the state Class 5A championship with a 40-point victory in the title game. At Kansas University, he was named All-Big Eight four times and averaged 15.4 points per game. He was drafted in the first round by the Portland Trailblazers and during a nine-year NBA career, which also included stints with the Los Angeles Clippers and Cleveland Cavaliers,  scored in double figures four times while averaging 5 assists. He was such a force as a penetrating point guard that he forced KU nemesis Coach Jack Hartman of Kansas State to create a 3-2 zone defense specially designed  just to try to  stop Valentine. After his pro career, he became the regional representative for the NBA Players Association and the liaison between the players and the union on the West Coast.