Walton Wins Arbitration, His Attorney Says

An arbitrator decided Friday in favor of Bill Walton in his contract dispute with the Clippers, according to Gary Vandeweghe, his attorney.

Although details of the decision by arbitrator Dan Collins have not yet been made public, Vandeweghe said he was told by Larry Fleisher, who represented Walton at the Thursday hearing in New York, that Walton had won the case.

“If the facts are the way I understand them to be, the effect of the ruling is that the Clippers owe Bill the compensation called for under the terms of his contract,” Vandeweghe said.

The Clippers expected an unfavorable ruling from Collins. Alan Rothenberg, the team’s president, said earlier in the week that the arbitration procedure, which is part of the National Basketball Assn.’s labor agreement with the players union, was not the proper forum to decide the issue with Walton.

Walton concealed activities that were detrimental to his health, the Clippers claimed in their suit against the 36-year-old veteran, who was under contract to the team from 1979-1983.

Rothenberg has said the Clippers will press on with their lawsuit against Walton, in which they claim they do not owe him about $1.6 million in deferred compensation because their former star center was physically unfit during his five-year contract.