Lawyer Michael Avenatti, who gained notoriety for his representation of Stormy Daniels, was sentenced to 30 months in prison on Thursday for trying to extort Nike out of more than $20 million, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Why it matters: Avenatti was once considered a rising Democratic star and a potential 2020 candidate before facing extortion, fraud and tax charges.

• Avenatti became a household name in 2018 and a fixture on cable television as Daniels' lawyer and filed lawsuits against former President Donald Trump on her behalf.

State of play: Avenatti was found guilty in February 2020 of attempted extortion, honest-services fraud and the related use of interstate communications after he attempted to "extract more than $20 million in payments" from Nike by threatening to bring bad publicity to the company unless it complied with his demands.