Denzel Robert Valentine (born November 16, 1993) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for the

Maine Celtics The Maine Celtics (formerly the Maine Red Claws) are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Portland, Maine, and are affiliated with the Boston Celtics. The Maine Celtics play their home games at the Portland Expo B ...

of the NBA G League. He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athle ...

for the Michigan State Spartans. As a senior, Valentine became the first player in Michigan State history to be recognized as the

National Player of the Year National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

by the Associated Press. He also earned other player of the year awards from the NABC, USA Today, Sports Illustrated,

NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its d ...

, and

Basketball Times ''Basketball Times'' was an American basketball magazine that was in circulation from 1978 to 2021, and was published by Akers Ink LLC. ''Basketball Times'' published monthly and mainly focused on college basketball. The headquarters was in Matthew ...

in addition to being named a unanimous First-Team All-American. Valentine was selected with the 14th pick in the 2016 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls.

High school career

Valentine attended

J. W. Sexton High School J. W. Sexton High School is a public school located on the western edge of Lansing, Michigan, United States, in the Lansing School District. The principal is currently Daniel Boggan. The Sexton J-Dubbs are members of the Capital Area Activiti ...

, where he was coached by his father, Carlton Valentine (former Michigan State player), and played alongside future Michigan State teammate

Bryn Forbes Bryn Jerrel Forbes (born July 23, 1993) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for Cleveland State and Michigan St ...

and Iowa basketball player Anthony Clemmons. As a sophomore, Valentine averaged 10.9 points, 5.8 assists and 6.3 rebounds, leading Sexton to a state title game. He was awarded 2010 Class B honorable mention all-state. Valentine averaged 14 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists per game as a senior, leading Sexton to a 27–1 record. He was selected as the Lansing State Journal Player of the Year and Associated Press Class B Player of the Year as a senior. As a recruit, Valentine was nationally ranked in the top 100 by

Rivals.com Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...

(no. 81), ESPNU100 (no. 98), and

Scout.com Scout Media is an integrated sports publishing company that produces Internet content covering hundreds of professional and college teams across America. The company was founded in 2001 and was acquired by Fox Sports in 2005. In 2013, Fox Sports ...

(no. 27).

College career

Following his successful freshman year, Valentine was the recipient of MSU's Unsung Player Award (voted on by players). As a sophomore, he earned honorable-mention All-Big Ten (Coaches and Media). Denzel Valentine (cropped)

With

Adreian Payne Adreian DeAngleo Payne (February 19, 1991 – May 9, 2022) was an American professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Atlanta Hawks, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Orlando Magic as well as for ...

and

Gary Harris Gary Harris (born September 14, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Michigan State Spartans. High school career Harris atte ...

leaving MSU for the NBA Draft,

Keith Appling Keith Damon Appling (born February 13, 1992) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Michigan State University. High school career Appling played high school basketball at Pershing High School in De ...

leaving due to graduation (eventually to the NBA), the dismissal of Kenny Kaminski, and the transfer of Russell Byrd, Valentine saw an increase in leadership and an expanded role on the team as a junior. Before the season started, he was awarded one of the three captain spots. Perhaps one of Valentine's most memorable moments came on Valentine's Day 2015, he hit the game winning shot in a matchup versus

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

and finished with 17 points. His junior season saw him earn Orlando Classic All-Tournament Team (averaging 19.3 points and 5.0 rebounds in three games), Third Team All-Big Ten,

USBWA The United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) was founded in 1956 by National Collegiate Athletic Association director Walter Byers to serve the interests of journalists who cover college basketball. Scholarships The USBWA annually aw ...

All-District V, and NCAA East Regional All-Tournament Team honors. On November 17, 2015, the senior Valentine became the 4th player in Michigan State history to record a

triple-double In basketball, a double-double is a single-game performance in which a player accumulates ten or more in two of the following five statistical categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots. The first "double" in the term ...

. He had 29 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists in Michigan State's 79-73 victory over the fourth-ranked Kansas Jayhawks. It was the first triple-double of the

2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 13. The first tournament was the 2K Sports Classic and ended with the Final Four in Houston April 2–4. Practices officially began on October 2. Rule changes The followin ...

. On December 21, it was announced that Valentine would be sidelined for 2–3 weeks after he underwent an arthroscopic knee surgery. He returned on January 10, 2016. He was named to the 35-man midseason watchlist for the

Naismith Trophy The Naismith Trophy is a trophy awarded to the men's champion of the FIBA Basketball World Cup, and is named in honor of basketball's inventor, James Naismith. The trophy was first awarded to the winner of the 1967 FIBA World Championship. The ...

on February 11. On February 29, he was named a semifinalist of the Oscar Robertson Trophy. Valentine was also a finalist for the

John R. Wooden Award The John R. Wooden Award is an award given annually to the most outstanding men's and women's college basketball players. The program consists of the men's and women's Player of the Year awards, the Legends of Coaching award, and recognizing the ...

, the

Adolph Rupp Trophy The Adolph F. Rupp Trophy was an award given annually to the top player in men's Division I NCAA basketball until 2015. The recipient of the award was selected by an independent panel consisting of national sportswriters, coaches, and sports admi ...

Associated Press College Basketball Player of the Year The Associated Press College Basketball Player of the Year award was established in 1961 to recognize the best men's college basketball player of the year, as voted upon by the Associated Press (AP). The only three-time winner is Ralph Sampson o ...

, and the

NABC Player of the Year The NABC Player of the Year is an award given annually by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) to recognize the top player in men's college basketball. The award has been given since the 1974–75 season to National Collegiate Athl ...

. Valentine finished the 2015–16 regular season averaging 19.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 7.5 assists as MSU finished in second place in the

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

. On March 8, USA Today named Valentine National Player of the Year over Oklahoma's

Buddy Hield Chavano Rainer "Buddy" Hield (born December 17, 1992) is a Bahamian professional basketball player for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was named the Big 12 Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year in 2015 ...

. The Big Ten also announced that Valentine was the Big Ten's Player of the Year. On March 9, Valentine was named to the Sporting News All-American Team. Valentine's senior year at

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

saw him ranked among the NCAA leaders when it came to three-point shooting. He accumulated many awards and won Michigan State's first College Basketball Player of the Year Award since

Draymond Green Draymond Jamal Green Sr. (born March 4, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Green, who plays primarily at the power forward position, is a four-time ...

won the

in 2012. Valentine shined during the Big Ten tournament in

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

, earning tournament Most Outstanding Player while winning Michigan State's fifth championship. Valentine, along with Bryn Forbes, were selected to the NCAA College Basketball Three-Point Contest following his senior year. Valentine defeated his teammate in the first round of the competition when he rattled off 22 points compared to Forbes' 10. Valentine was eliminated from the competition in the semifinals when he hit 17 points, needing 23 to advance. Valentine's senior year also proved very effective in raising his draft stock. Valentine went from being potentially undrafted to being seen as a potential lottery pick in the 2016 NBA draft.

Awards

University awards

* George Alderton Male Athlete of the Year (Michigan State University Athlete of the Year)

National Player of the Year awards

* Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame - Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year * AP – National Player of the Year * NABC – National Player of the Year * USA Today – National Player of the Year *

– National Player of the Year * Sports Illustrated – National Player of the Year * College Sports Madness – National Player of the Year * Basketball Times – National Player of the Year *

Senior CLASS Award The Senior CLASS Award is awarded to the most outstanding senior student-athlete in 10 NCAA Division I sports. An acronym for "Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School," the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete ...

Winner – Top Senior in the Nation *

CollegeInsider.com Collegeinsider.com is a sports website based in Boston that is noted particularly for its basketball polls, awards and sponsored tournament. The website was founded by Joe Dwyer and Angela Lento and traces it history to 1995 as regional basketball ...

– Lute Olson National Player of the Year *

Julius Erving Award The Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award is an annual basketball award given by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to the top men's College athletics, collegiate small forward. Following the success of the Bob Cousy Award whic ...

– Nations Top Small Forward

=All-American awards

= * AP – 1st Team All-American * NABC – 1st Team All-American *

CBS Sports CBS Sports is the sports division of the American television network CBS. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on W 52nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on W 57 ...

– 1st Team All-American * USA Today – 1st Team All-American * NBC Sports – 1st Team All-American * College Sports Madness – 1st Team All-American * Bleacher Report – 1st Team All-American *

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The co ...

– 1st Team All-American *

– 1st Team All-American * Sporting News – 1st Team All-American * Sports Illustrated – 1st Team All-American * Sports On Earth – 1st Team All-American * Senior CLASS Award – 1st Team All-American * TSN – 1st Team All-American * VegasInsider.com – 1st Team All-American *

– Lute Olson All-American

=Big Ten/Regional awards

= * CBS – Big Ten Player of the Year *

– Big Ten Player of the Year * AP – Big Ten Player of the Year * FOX – Big Ten Player of the Year * Bleacher Report – Big Ten Player of the Year * Big Ten Player of the Year (Media) * Big Ten Player of the Year (Coaches) * All-Big Ten 1st Team Media * All-Big Ten 1st Team Coaches * CBS – Big Ten 1st Team * Bleacher Report – All Big Ten 1st Team * Big Ten tournament Most Outstanding Player Award * Big Ten's All Tournament Team * USBWA – District V Player of the Year * USBWA – District V All 1st Team

Professional career

Chicago Bulls (2016–2021)

On June 23, 2016, Valentine was selected by the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January 1 ...

with the 14th overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft. On July 16, 2016, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Bulls. Two days later, Valentine hit a turnaround jumper as time expired to lift the Bulls to an 84–82 overtime victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Las Vegas Summer League championship game. On January 2, 2017, Valentine, who had played just four total minutes in the previous seven games, played 18 minutes against the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division, and pla ...

and hit his first three three-pointers, finishing with a then season-high nine points. He exited with an ankle injury in the second half, as the Bulls went on to win 118–111. On January 10, 2017, he posted career highs with 19 points and five three-pointers in a 101–99 loss to the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays ...

. On March 18, 2017, Valentine recorded his first career double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds in a 95–86 win over the Utah Jazz. During his rookie season, Valentine received multiple assignments to the Windy City Bulls, Chicago's

D-League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA Dev ...

affiliate. On November 26, 2017, Valentine had 14 points and career highs of 13 rebounds and seven assists in a 100–93 loss to the Miami Heat. On January 18, 2018, he scored 19 points against the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

. Two days later, he scored a career-high 20 points in a 122–119 double-overtime win over the New York Knicks. On March 17, 2018, he hit eight 3-pointers and scored a career-best 34 points in a 114–109 loss to the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Centr ...

. On April 4, 2018, Valentine underwent arthroscopic debridement on his left knee, which ruled him out for the rest of the season. In September 2018, Valentine was diagnosed with a sprained left ankle during the team's training camp and was expected to miss one to two weeks. However, in late October, the Bulls announced he was suffering from a bone bruise, not a sprain, and would miss an additional two weeks. On November 19, after missing the first 17 games of the season, Valentine was diagnosed with ongoing ankle instability. Following a left ankle stabilization procedure on November 27, he was ruled out for the season.

Cleveland Cavaliers (2021–2022)

On September 22, 2021, Valentine signed with the

Utah Jazz (2022)

On January 3, 2022, the Cavs traded Valentine to the New York Knicks as part of a three team deal that also included the Los Angeles Lakers. He was subsequently waived. On January 10, 2022, Valentine signed a 10-day contract with the Utah Jazz.

Maine Celtics (2022–present)

On January 21, 2022, Valentine was acquired via waivers by the

. On September 15, 2022, Valentine signed with the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

. He was waived on September 30. He subsequently re-joined Maine.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 57 , , 0 , , 17.1 , , .354, , .351 , , .778 , , 2.6 , , 1.1 , , .5 , , .1 , , 5.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 77 , , 37 , , 27.2 , , .417 , , .386 , , .745 , , 5.1 , , 3.2 , , .8 , , .1 , , 10.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 36 , , 5 , , 13.6 , , .409 , , .336 , , .750 , , 2.1 , , 1.2 , , .7 , , .2 , , 6.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 62 , , 3 , , 16.7 , , .373 , , .331 , , .941 , , 3.2 , , 1.7 , , .5 , , .1 , , 6.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Cleveland , 22 , , 0 , , 9.3 , , .371 , , .409 , , , , 1.7 , , .5 , , .3 , , .0 , , 2.9 , - class"sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 254 , , 45 , , 18.9 , , .393 , , .360 , , .787 , , 3.4 , , 1.8 , , .6 , , .1 , , 7.0

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;",

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a se ...

, style="text-align:left;", Chicago , 4 , , 0 , , 5.5 , , .333 , , .250 , , , , 2.0 , , .5 , , .0 , , .3 , , 1.3 , - class"sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 4 , , 0 , , 5.5 , , .333 , , .250 , , , , 2.0 , , .5 , , .0 , , .3 , , 1.3

College

, - , style="text-align:left;",

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 36 , , 15 , , 20.8 , , .445 , , .281 , , .667 , , 4.1 , , 2.4 , , .8 , , .3 , , 5.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2013–14 , style="text-align:left;",

, 38 , , 33 , , 29.4 , , .408 , , .377 , , .677 , , 6.0 , , 3.8 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , 8.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2014–15 , style="text-align:left;",

, 39 , , 39 , , 33.2 , , .443 , , .416 , , .826 , , 6.3 , , 4.3 , , .9 , , .2 , , 14.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 31 , , 30 , , 33.0 , , .462 , , .444 , , .853 , , 7.5 , , 7.8 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 19.2 , - class"sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 144 , , 117 , , 29.0 , , .442 , , .408 , , .779 , , 5.9 , , 4.4 , , .9 , , .3 , , 11.4

National team career

Valentine was a member of

USA Basketball USA Basketball (USAB) is a non-profit organization and the governing body for basketball in the United States. The organization represents the United States in FIBA and the men's and women's national basketball teams in the United States Oly ...

's senior men's national team at the

2015 Pan American Games Fifteen or 15 may refer to: *15 (number), the natural number following 14 and preceding 16 *one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015 Music *Fifteen (band), a punk rock band Albums * ''15'' (Buckcherry album), 2005 * ''15'' (Ani Lorak albu ...

which was held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The U.S. team captured the tournament's bronze medal, with a 3–2 record The following year, Valentine joined the USA Basketball Select Team to train against the 2016 Rio Olympic team.

Personal life

Valentine is the son of Carlton and Kathy Valentine. His older brother,

Drew Drew may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places ;In the United States * Drew, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Drew, Mississippi, a city * Drew, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Drew, Oregon, an unincorporated community * Drew County, Arkansas ...

, played collegiate basketball for Oakland University, and is now the head coach at Loyola University in Chicago. Valentine considers fellow NBA player and Michigan State alumni

"like a big brother". On April 7, 2016, Valentine and his coach at Michigan State, Tom Izzo, were featured as guests on

Dancing With the Stars ''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series ''Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the forma ...

where they learned from

Artem Chigvintsev Artem Vladimirovich Chigvintsev (russian: Артём Влади́мирович Чи́гвинцев; born 12 June 1982) is a Russian-American professional dancer, specializing in Latin dancing. Chigvintsev was a cast member of ''Burn the Flo ...

and

Edyta Sliwinska Edyta may refer to: People * Edyta Bartosiewicz (born 1965), Polish rock singer * Edyta Dzieniszewska (born 1986), Polish sprint canoer * Edyta Geppert (born 1953), popular Polish singer * Edyta Górniak (born 1972), Polish pop singer * Edyta Herbu ...

. Valentine is also a rapper who released his first album in February 2021.

References

External links

Michigan State Spartans bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valentine, Denzel 1993 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportspeople African-American basketball players All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players at the 2015 Pan American Games Basketball players from Michigan Big Ten Athlete of the Year winners Chicago Bulls draft picks Chicago Bulls players Cleveland Cavaliers players Maine Celtics players Medalists at the 2015 Pan American Games Michigan State Spartans men's basketball players Pan American Games bronze medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in basketball Shooting guards Sportspeople from Lansing, Michigan United States men's national basketball team players Utah Jazz players Windy City Bulls players