Welcome to Axis ProRata, a podcast that takes just 10 minutes to get you smarter on the collision of tech business and politics.

I'm Demper Mac. On today's show, Apple's surprise announcement and McDonald's moves from Big Macs to Big Data.

But first, the fall of Michael Avanotti. So this is a name I have studiously avoided on this podcast, as he's always looked to be this shameless self-promoter whose top skill seems to be availability when called by cable TV bookers.

But now he's legitimately in the news, not as Stormy Daniels's former attorney or as a ludicrous 2020 presidential candidate, but as the defendant in a lawsuit claiming that he

tried to extort more than $20 million from Nike.

That's right.

Just a short time ago, Nike was the bane of right-wingers due to its endorsement contract

with Colin Kaepernick.

Now it's the aggrieved victim of a common enemy.

Anyway, the basic allegation here is that Avanotti became the lawyer

for a former amateur basketball coach named Gary Franklin Sr., who allegedly had evidence

that Nike had paid three of his players who were all still in high school at the time. One of those

players was DeAndre Aiton, who was the first pick in last year's NBA draft and currently plays

for the Phoenix Suns. Avonati allegedly first told Nike that he would hold a press conference, revealing

the alleged wrongdoing unless the sneaker giant paid his client $1.5 million.

And then in a remarkable show of Hutzpah, Avanotti also demanded that Nike hire him,

Hire Avanotti, to conduct an internal investigation of such payments.

At this point, why not also just ask for lifetime supply of Air Jordans and future royalties to fill Knight's book?

So for Avanotti, it obviously could mean jail time, and maybe the same for his alleged co-conspirator Mark Garagos,

another lawyer known best for his TV appearances.

But why it really matters is that this could further expose the ugly underbelly of amateur sports

and their intersection with big for-profit business.

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