A lawsuit has now been added to the embarrassing offseason of Zion Williamson. A California-based computer business is suing the troubled Pelicans player, along with his mother and stepfather, for allegedly failing to repay a $2 million loan. The forward has recently been the subject of trade speculations and an ongoing issue involving a former adult film star.
According to the Associated Press, Ankr PBC, a business that specializes “in blockchain-related technologies used in finance and data storage,” stated in the petition that it made the loan to the 23-year-old Williamson and family members in September 2021.
Williamson was selected first overall in the 2019 NBA Draft, and at the time, the business was attempting to establish a marketing partnership with him in the hopes that he would act as an Ankr spokesman.
The below tweet confirms the case:
NEW: Zion Williamson sued for breach of contract after alleged failure to repay $2M loan from @ankr.
A big issue in the case will be whether co-defendant Lee Anderson, Williamson’s step-father, had authority to enter into contracts on Williamson’s behalf. Rocky 2023 for Zion. pic.twitter.com/sQpPccY7qY
— Jason Morrin (@Jason_Morrin) July 26, 2023
According to the allegations, Ankr provided Williamson with a personal chef and physical trainer as well as assistance with community events.
The lawsuit claims that Lee Anderson, Williamson’s stepfather, served as the two-time All-Star’s business manager and sought $150,000 upfront. The loan from Ankr was subject to the requirement that it be repaid in full by August 2022.
When Anderson sent Ankr a $25,000 check, the cheque allegedly bounced because he had asked for extensions.
The family had made costly investments, such as the purchase of certain real estate in New Orleans, and could not meet their obligations due to the temporary suspension of payments from Williamson’s sponsorship deals as a result of an injury, according to the lawsuit. “Anderson represented that the loan was urgently needed,” the lawsuit read.
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Ankr and Anderson allegedly “entered into a forbearance agreement in which the company agreed not to sue if it received repayment of $500,000 by April 25 [of 2023],” according to the lawsuit, according to the AP.
In addition, the money owed was due on July 6, 2023.
Ankr claimed to have received $500,000 on time, but the legal documents reveal that $1.8 million was ultimately left unpaid since $300,000 of the amount was used to pay interest.
In part because Ankr wired money into her account, Williamson’s mother Sharonda Sampson is now listed as a defendant in the lawsuit, according to AP.
Williamson and his stepfather have previously been involved in a legal battle over the NBA player’s business affairs.
In June 2019, after Williamson sued Ford and Prime Sports in an effort to end his marketing relationship with her business, Ford filed a counterclaim against Williamson for $100 million in damages, alleging breach of contract.
In January 2021, a federal judge in North Carolina declared that whatever agreement Ford had to represent Williamson was null and void because, at the time of their meeting, she was not a licensed agent in that state.
Williamson, who hasn’t played since January, has been in the news a lot this summer, partly because of his personal life.
Skip Bayless claimed in April that the Pelicans’ management was “increasingly at odds with Zion’s stepfather, who is sort of running the show on the Zion camp.”
At the time, according to Bayless, the team believed Anderson’s advice, particularly regarding Williamson’s health, was preventing him from participating.
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