LEXINGTON - An unnamed University of Kentucky basketball assistant coach received mention in the motion filed in federal court Wednesday on behalf of lawyer Michael Avenatti alleging under-the-table payments from Nike to elite high school basketball recruits.
Avenatti was charged with extortion in March after he allegedly threatened to go public with evidence of pay-to-play schemes within Nike's Elite Youth Basketball league similar to ones that sparked an FBI investigation largely centered on Adidas and its grassroots basketball league if the company did not hire him to conduct an internal investigation and pay his client, former EYBL coach Gary Franklin Sr.