Zion Williamson Sues to Get Out of Marketing Firm Contract

His lawyers claim the contract was illegal.

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zion williamson

Zion Williamson is suing to be released from his contract with Florida marketing firm Prime Sports, ESPN reports

Williamson's attorneys claim that the contract the Duke star and presumed first pick in the upcoming NBA draft signed earlier this year was illegal under North Carolina law. The suit, which names Prime and the company's owner Gina Ford, said that Zion's contract does not contain necessary language that would have alerted Zion that signing the contract would void his eligibility to play collegiate sports. North Carolina's Uniform Athlete Agents Act requires that contracts contain a clause in boldface, all-caps type that explains this to student-athletes. In addition, Prime Sports is not registered to act as an agent in North Carolina or Florida and is not certified by the National Basketball Players Association. Zion's attorneys argue that this makes the contract illegal under the UAAA. 

The lawsuit comes after Zion signed on with another agency, CAA Sports. Prime Sports warned that they would sue Zion for more than $100 million in damages, necessitating this lawsuit to void his former contract.

An attorney for Zion told ESPN that the contract "blatantly violated the North Carolina statute specifically designed to protect student athletes. Mr. Williamson properly exercised his rights under the law to void his business dealings with Prime Sports Marketing," said attorney Jeffrey S. Klein. "Prime Sports Marketing's continued threats against Mr. Williamson made necessary the filing of this lawsuit." 

Marketing deals are far from the only thing that Zion is fielding. In his expected landing spot of New Orleans, Master P is already cooking up a potential shoe deal. The No Limit head (and one-time sports agency CEO) offered Zion $20 million for a sneaker endorsement

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