Avenatti Says Texts Show Nike Was Willing to Pay Elite Recruits

Ever since Michael Avenatti was charged in March with trying to extort more than $20 million from Nike Inc., he’s claimed that the company set him up to hide its own crimes. Now, the embattled California lawyer is seeking to beef up his case by previewing what he describes as extensive evidence of wrongdoing by Nike’s Elite Youth Basketball League.

Avenatti on Wednesday filed a 50-page motion to dismiss the federal charges in New York, in which he cited Nike’s willingness to pay elite recruits, including Zion Williamson and Romeo Langford. Avenatti doesn’t include evidence that Nike followed through on making the offers.