Money Hasn't Spoiled Hot Rod Williams

``You won't read about John Williams tripling his money overnight, but you won't hear about him losing his money, either.''

- Mark Bartelstein, John Williams' agent.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. - Little more than a month ago, John ``Hot Rod'' Williams cashed a check for $4 million. By Sept. 1, 1991, Williams will have made $9 million in a 12-month period.

Remember that the Cleveland Cavaliers forward grew up dirt poor in a trailer in Sorrento, La., never knowing his mother or his father. He survived and was exonerated in the Tulane point-shaving scandal; now he's the richest player in team sports, at least for the moment.

``The neat thing about this story is that most basketball fans outside of Ohio didn't even know who John Williams was until the contract,'' Williams' agent, Mark Bartelstein, said. ``They thought it was the John Williams who plays for Washington.

``But this John Williams is a good family man, who kept his mouth shut and was rewarded. The system worked for a guy who paid a lot of dues.''

Williams received a ground-breaking, seven-year, $26.5 million contract from Miami in late August, which was matched by the Cavaliers. The Cavs tried to deal Williams to Seattle for Xavier McDaniel and Nate McMillan, but Williams exercised his right to veto the trade, turning down a $3.5 million bonus in the process.

``The biggest difference for me is that I never got this much attention before,'' Williams said. ``It was wild, especially when the trade was going on.

``Somebody (in the media) called the police and said I was missing. But most of that has died down, now. Really, I'm back with the Cavs, and I'm the same old John Williams. Living in Akron and playing for the Cavs is quiet, and I like it that way. I still live in the same ($79,000) house I bought when I first came to town.''

But he is richer.

Williams bought a Mercedes for himself and is building two homes in Sorrento, one for himself and one for Barbara Colar, the woman who raised him.

``The houses are seven minutes apart,'' he said. ``I live by the one stop light in town, she is at the other. That way I can be close to her whenever she needs me.''

As for the rest of the money, ``that's a boring story,'' Bartelstein said.

How so?

``We are into very, very conservative investments,'' Bartelstein said. ``Things such as municipal bonds, zero coupon bonds, tax-free investments. We must have heard from everybody in the world who wants to drill an oil well or start a restaurant - well, those things are the fastest way to lose money.

``John already has all the money he needs. Our job now is to keep it, help it grow and take no chances.''

Bartelstein, 30, was a virtual unknown as an NBA agent until Williams' contract. He has been with Williams since 1985, when Williams had to sit out a season while the Tulane case was resolved in the courts.

``A lot of people think that I tell John what to do,'' Bartelstein said. ``He makes his own decisions. I give him options and information. We have a financial firm, a law firm and other experts advising him. But in the end, we do what John says.

``The proof is that a lot of agents have power of attorney over their players. They pay all the bills for the players and just give the guys an allowance. The player doesn't even learn how to write a check and he's treated like a child.

``But that's not the case with John. He pays his household bills. When John got out of school, he didn't know how to tie a tie, write a check or any of those things. It's not anyone's fault, it was just circumstances.

``Instead of hiding from it, John learned how to deal with the world. He won't be lost when he can't play ball anymore.''

Williams knows his life has changed. He has been warned to be careful on the road so that someone doesn't try to run into him in order to file a lawsuit.

``I have to be careful with my family,'' Williams said. ``The reason I didn't go to Seattle was that my son (John Jr.) is in a good school. The van picks him up at my door, takes him to the school, and then brings him home. I know he's safe and no one can touch my children.

``I went to the school's open house last week. I always just keep to my family and that hasn't changed.''

Bartelstein said, ``On the road, John stays in his room, drinks milk and goes to bed early. It sounds unbelievable, but that's what he does.''

Williams and Bartelstein also are putting together a charitable foundation.

``I will do good things to help kids,'' Williams said. ``That's one of my goals.''