Bill Walton era Clippers- glimpse of what could have been

Roscoe Sheed · Post #1 » by **Roscoe Sheed** » Fri Sep 2, 2022 2:41 am

In the off-season I love watching old NBA games from the 1980s- the era in which I first got into the NBA.

I just finished watching this game from 12/26/82.

Walton had returned to a struggling Clippers team to take on his former team. He still had great ability to impact the game after 2 seasons off. If he had stayed healthy and they kept the core of Cummnings, Chambers, and Hodges together, they could have been a solid team.

part 1:

Watch on YouTube

part 2:

part 3:

part 4:

part 5:

;t=668s

box score: https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/198212260SDC.html

Post #2 » by **TrueLAfan** » Sat Sep 3, 2022 2:35 pm

Yup. I mean, in 1983, the Clippers had Tom Chambers and Terry Cummings at the forward positions—both were better at PF; both could play enough at SF and C to make it work. We had picked up Lionel Hollins, who could still play, Michael Brooks, who was a good player until he knee went out (in, I think 1985). Jerome Whitehead and Craig Hodges and Al Wood were decent mid level rotation players. It’s a weak D team, but that’s why you have Walton. And it’s also a super, super young team—other than Hollins, none of those other players were over 25. It was a 25 win team that had promise. Cummings was a borderline HOF fame player; probably would have made it if he hadn’t blown out the knee in 1992. (He was a 22-9-3 guy in his first ten years.) Chambers was almost at that level. Really, looking back, those guys were more or less Tatum and Brown. Sure the Clippers lacked the supporting pieces the Celtics had/have. But Chambers/Cummings were clearly a 40-45 point, 18 rebound pair that could stretch court and play decent D. Couldn’t ask for a whole lot more from the forwards.

You kinda see now what a massive albatross the Walton contract was. I don’t know what the Clippers’ payroll was in 1983, but I do know that Walton made close a million. The league average payroll was around $4.5 million when they had the 1985 CBA, so it was probably more than a little lower a couple of years before—and Walton was eating up 25-30% of it a year and not playing. He signed a seven year contract and played in 14 games in the first four seasons of it. 1983 was his comeback year—he was rusty, but still skilled. And massively, massively, massively overpaid on a team run by the cheapest owner in history of the NBA. What could the Clippers have done with Walton’s $900,000 in 1983?

I was young, but I really remember the 1983 team, mainly because of Cummings and Chambers, who were so clearly up and coming stars. They—and the Clippers—needed everything Donald Sterling would never, ever provide; stability, support, and consistency. It was still a fun ride that year. 1983 and 1990 were the bad years that I remember as being the most fun. Nice post! 8-)