Prospect Spotlight: Ace Valentine (2023)
Trusting the process is a slogan that is easily thrown around in conversations, tweets or captions on IG posts, but it’s much more difficult to actually live it. In a day and age where instant gratification rules, being forced to overcome and take a path different from those around you often times results in a person backing down. For Mount St. Joseph rising sophomore guard Ace Valentine, he knows what trusting the process entails and now gets to prove himself on the varsity level.
Valentine was a highly sought after middle school prospect as he was known for his scoring ability. Head coach Pat Clatchey operates his program differently than most in that he doesn’t allow every freshman that he recruits to play on the varsity team. Instead he allows them to play one or two years of JV, instill confidence in their game and ultimately transition to the varsity level smoothly. A recent example of this route is D’Angelo Stines D’Angelo Stines 6'2" | CG Mount St. Joseph | 2021 State MD , a 6-foot-2 guard who saw his recruitment pick up significantly after being a vital piece to their postseason success.
“We were 27-2 on the year so we had a really good team,” Valentine said as he reflected on 2019-20. “I feel like I did pretty well. I could’ve done better but I was happy with how I played. The only thing I really need to work on is my attitude, so that’s what I’ve been focusing on.”
The fact that Valentine is aware of the improvements that may need to be made with his attitude or body language speaks to his overall maturity. Identifying the weakness is the first step in turning into a strength.
“I feel like I can handle the ball pretty well, make the right play and not turn the ball over,” Valentine said after being asked to describe his game. “I can shoot and play defense. I need to improve on my defense and just locking in at all times but I know that when I do, I can stay in front of a lot of players. At the varsity level I have to be able to step over and take charges and be there on the help side at all time. I also can also be the facilitator and get the ball where it needs to be on offense.”
The Gaels have no shortage of guards who can both score and distribute. Adding a player of Valentine’s ilk only bolsters the depth and as we’ve seen in years past, equal out to a successful equation to be a contender for the MIAA and BCL crowns.
“Coach Clatchey is always sending me drills and giving me things to work on for the summer,” the 6-foot-1 guard said. “I’ve been able to get together with some of the guards in the program just so we can keep working hard as a group. It’s been good.”
Valentine made is evident that he is a gifted scorer throughout Team Durant’s training camp for the 15U team. He can really shoot off the dribble from three and also displays soft touch on his looks around the rim. But what impressed me most is his awareness for what he needs to improve on and how he has handled his two season at the junior varsity level while many of his teammates from AAU have been playing varsity since their freshman year for their respective schools.
“I’m glad it worked out how it did,” Valentine said. “I knew if I was on varsity that I wouldn’t have played as much and it would’ve just been a lot of practice. Playing JV got me a lot of experience of playing point guard and also off the ball so I know how to handle different situations. My confidence going into next year is high and I think I will make the transition well.”
Valentine handled business both on and off the court as he finished his first year of high school with a 4.4 GPA.