At the heart of it was a demand for Nike to spill millions or face a PR nightmare, with corruption claims from his client Gary Franklin Sr., a notable figure in the basketball world, hanging over their heads like the sword of Damocles.
Franklin painted a story of betrayal by two Nike representatives, who allegedly nudged him to fund young basketball talents and later abandoned their sponsorship ties.
Desperate, he sought Avenatti’s expertise to mend bridges with Nike. However, Franklin got more than he bargained for when he discovered Avenatti’s plan to blow the whistle publicly unless Nike coughed up the cash.
But Avenatti’s audacity didn’t stop there.
He presented Nike with a dual ultimatum: a $1.5 million settlement for Franklin and an eyebrow-raising $15 to $25 million for Avenatti’s “services” to investigate Nike internally.
The Circuit’s take? Avenatti’s demand wasn’t in the spirit of justice; it was a cunning play for self-gain.
With recordings revealing Avenatti’s threats to drain billions from Nike’s market value and launch a media assault, the picture became clear: Avenatti’s goals were misaligned with his client’s.
Appeal Of Nike Conviction : The Fallout
While observers, like Marc Scholl, viewed Avenatti’s actions as a perilous game to tarnish Nike’s reputation for his own enrichment, the court’s final gavel was on Avenatti’s deception. He not only pushed Franklin’s claims for his gain but held Franklin’s possible settlement hostage for a heftier personal payout.
