Duke Looking into Michael Avenatti's Claims That Nike Paid Zion Williamson's Mom

Duke will look into allegations that basketball star Zion Williamson and his family received benefits to commit to the school.

Athletic director Kevin White provided a statement Saturday to Ben Leonard of the Duke Chronicle:

"We are aware of the allegation and, as we would with any compliance matter, are looking into it. Duke is fully committed to compliance with all NCAA rules and regulations. Every student athlete at Duke is reviewed to ensure their eligibility. With regard to men’s basketball: all recruits and their families are thoroughly vetted by Duke in collaboration with the NCAA through the Eligibility Center’s amateurism certification process."

This comes after lawyer Michael Avenatti accused Nike of giving Williamson's mother, Sharonda Sampson, money under the false pretense of payment for consultancy services:

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski was asked about an initial tweet from Avenatti in March and responded, "There's nothing there," per Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports.

Nike also disregarded the allegations in a statement:

Avenatti also alleged Saturday that he has proof that Nike gave illegal benefits to Deandre Ayton, Bol Bol and Brandon McCoy:

The lawyer was arrested in March on fraud charges unconnected to his relationship with Nike, but he was also charged with attempting to extort over $20 million from Nike. Convictions on all charges could lead to up to 97 years in prison.

Williamson recently completed his freshman year at Duke, finishing with averages of 22.6 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game. He was named ACC Player of the Year and the Associated Press National Player of the Year.

While he has three years of eligibility remaining, he is expected to declare for the NBA draft, where he will likely be the No. 1 overall pick.