He’s Mastered the Art of the Deal : Agent: Hamilton High’s Leigh Steinberg has earned a reputation for not only negotiating megabuck deals, but for requiring his clients to give back to their communities.

After Carnell Lake was named an All-American linebacker at UCLA in 1988, he needed an agent to represent him for the NFL draft.

Lake, a former Culver City High player, was contacted by more than 200 agents and narrowed his list to 10.

After interviewing three of the candidates, Lake thought he had made the right decision.

Until he read the newspaper the next day.

Lloyd Bloom, the agent Lake spoke with, and his partner Norby Walters had been indicted on charges of racketeering, conspiracy and mail fraud. In short, Bloom and Walters were accused of persuading college athletes to sign as clients before their eligibility expired--a violation of the NCAA rules. Their conviction later was overturned by a federal appeals court.

“It’s really hard to get a fix on people even when they have big-name players as clients,” Lake said. “They still might be shady people.”

Lake, who was taken in the second round by the Pittsburgh Steelers, signed with sports attorney Leigh Steinberg.

“Leigh brought over a ton of articles about himself and his clients,” Lake said. “He spoke about values and helping out your community by donating to charities. Other agents talked about it too but it was really lip service. They had no concrete evidence to back it up.”

For the past 17 years, Steinberg, who grew up in West Los Angeles and attended Hamilton High, has convinced some of the NFL’s top draft picks that there is more to life than signing a multi-year megabuck contract. He represents more than 60 football players, including 1992 first-round picks Desmond Howard of Michigan, David Klingler of Houston and Tommy Maddox of UCLA.

Steinberg, 43, also represents the first player selected in three drafts: Dallas quarterback Troy Aikman in 1989, Indianapolis quarterback Jeff George in 1990 and Dallas defensive lineman Russell Maryland in 1991.

Steinberg has negotiated more than $200 million in contracts. The most lucrative was a $42-million personal services contract given to Steve Young by the Los Angeles Express of the defunct United States Football League in 1984.

He also requires his clients to donate a portion of their earnings to local charities in their hometown and in communities where they compete. By Steinberg’s account, his clients have raised more than $30 million nationally.

“Athletes have a unique capability to serve as role models, to retrace their roots and to give back something they have received,” Steinberg said. “By setting up programs and scholarship funds, the athletes make a contribution to their community that helps improve the quality of life. In turn, those people that benefit from the funds hopefully will give back money when they become financially secure.”

Steinberg, who lives in Newport Beach with his wife and two sons, will be honored at a charity dinner tonight at the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel. He will receive the Champion of Liberty Award by the Pacific Southwest Region of the Anti-Defamation League Sports Division.

Steinberg became affiliated with the ADL through his father, Dr. Warren Steinberg, a former principal at Fairfax High and onetime president of the Los Angeles Human Relations Commission. He spent the better part of his life growing up in a moderate-size house in Rancho Park.

A sign posted on the front door read: “We welcome neighbors of any race, religion or nationality.”

Steinberg was a class president at Hamilton and attended UCLA as a freshman. A social activist and a Vietnam protester, Steinberg transferred to UC Berkeley to continue work on his undergraduate degree. A bystander during the student revolt at People’s Park, Steinberg was later elected student body president by advocating nonviolence as a political platform.

Steinberg was a dorm counselor at Cal in 1975 when he met his first client, quarterback Steve Bartkowski. Unhappy with his agent, Bartkowski asked Steinberg, who had recently graduated from Boalt law school, to represent him.

Steinberg accepted Bartkowski’s offer and negotiated a four-year, $650,000 deal for the quarterback. At the time it was the largest contract ever given to an NFL rookie.

Utilizing his Hamilton High connection, Steinberg signed his next client, former Yankee Warren Moon, who was a quarterback at Washington. The two met during the Challenge Bowl, an all-star game for the best seniors of the Pacific 10 and Big Ten conferences.

Moon was drawn to Steinberg because he talked more about a player’s well-being and not the amount and length of his future contract.

“So many players leave football with nothing,” Moon said. “Leigh talked about setting me up for after football before my pro career started. He taught me how to build relationships with other people and how to make business contacts and get involved in charities in the community.”

Steinberg, however, has not been a patsy at the negotiation tables.

Shortly after signing Young to a record contract, Steinberg negotiated a five-year, $5.5-million deal for Moon with the Houston Oilers.

Steinberg also set up a scholarship fund on Moon’s behalf at Hamilton and West L.A. College. Hamilton assistant principal Elizabeth Metzelaar said Moon has contributed a $250 scholarship to students for the past 15 years. Steinberg also established a onetime scholarship of $1,000 in 1990. Steinberg’s father has contributed a $200 scholarship annually.

“There are probably less than 10 scholarships given at Hamilton from the group of people who attended here,” Metzelaar said.

Lake has contributed a $2,000 scholarship to Culver City High, which is the largest award given to the school, according to scholarship treasurer Tom Supple.

Lake, who lives in Culver City, also raises money for the Children’s Rehabilitation Institute in Pittsburgh.

Aikman has established a $75,000 endowment at UCLA.

Although the business of representing players has become increasingly competitive, Steinberg does not have to lobby players for his services. He accepted offers from only six football players. He received phone calls from 65 prospects.

“I have a special relationship with my players,” he said. “I enjoy the fun and excitement of growing up together with them,” he said. “Moon and I have been together for 15 years and I have been in his wedding and he has been in mine. I am also the godfather for several of my players’ children.”

Moon said jokingly that Steinberg isn’t the perfect angel that newspapers portray him to be.

“(Steinberg) is not the neatest tobacco chewer in the world,” Moon said. “He sends me contacts with dried tobacco juice on it. Once you get by the tobacco juice, you can finally read the details of the contract.”

It’s one of the few spots on Steinberg’s record as a sports attorney.