Heart and Soul - Florentino Valencia to Toledo

Crane's four-year varsity starter is called the team's
heart and soul by teammate Carl Marshall.

By Frank Rusnak
With Crane’s Florentino Valencia the term “having a lot of heart” is often used, but lets look at the similarities between “Tino” and the human heart.

Heart: From the moment it begins beating until it stops (its user dies), it works tirelessly and never stops.
Tino: From the moment he steps on the court, he gives the team inspiration, motivation and an added boost, and hasn’t yet been caught taking a break on the court.

Heart: Life’s sustaining power, without it, you wouldn’t be here.
Tino: His team’s driving force, take him out of the game and it’s sort of like killing the team's chances of a win.

Heart: In an average lifetime, the heart beats more than two and a half billion times.
Tino: Well, he’s scored a lot of points.

The 6’6” power forward broke a lot of hearts when he committed to play next year with the University of Toledo in Ohio. Undersized, he looks to make an instant impact in the Mid-American Conference along with fellow Rocket-bound Chicagoan, St. Rita’s Rashay Russell.

"He's our team's heart and soul. He goes out there every night and gives 150 percent with his tough inside play."

Carl Marshall
Crane High School

”[Russell and I] can make an instant impact and go for a tournament run,” said Tino, who compares himself to a Ron Artest-type of player.

Averaging 20 points and 11 rebounds as a four-year varsity starter at Crane, Tino was the driving force in the Cougars’ 26-1 season this year. He helped the Cougars to their first city title since 1972.

“Tino is the guy that does the grunt work and he doesn’t have any problem with that,” Crane coach Anthony Longstreet said. “He’s an ultimate team player. He leads by his actions and his words.”

Teamed with four other senior starters that are all Division I-level players, Tino’s teammates realize his importance.

“He's our team's heart and soul,” said Crane guard Carl Marshall, who went to Fredrick Douglas Grammar School with Tino. “He goes out there every night and gives 150 percent with his tough inside play.”

The good relationships that he’s built with his teammates are a good indication of both his light-hearted personality and ability on the court.

“That’s my man and a honey gram,” joked Crane center and DePaul-bound Lorenzo Thompson. “If he’s out there doing the things he’s doing, I can just get in the flow with him. He’s always ganna play hard, so I just got to follow his lead.”

While Tino is borderline academically for qualifying to play as a freshman, the Toledo coaches are confident he will come through in the stretch run of classes and be eligible right away. If not, he is a likely Prop 48, partial qualifier, for next year with the Rockets.

In the Wendy’s All-Star Classic on Easter against New York’s star players, Tino had to go up against 6’9” players Seton Hall-bound Grant Billmeier and Pittsburgh-bound Chris Taft. Taft, who plays with an extraordinary amount of athleticism, and Billmeier, who is planted in the post more like a redwood than a high school center, presented Tino with more than a casual challenge, but Tino stayed with the larger opponents.

“Playing against them only makes me better,” Tino said. “I don’t mind battling anytime, against any size. I’ll go up on Yao Ming or Shaq if I have to. Size really isn’t a factor to me. I try to bring intensity and hard-nosed basketball. I like to bring more intensity to the game than finesse.”