Michael Avenatti was $15 million in debt when he extorted Nike

Michael Avenatti had a clear motive to extort Nike, prosecutors say — he was $15 million in debt.

The new details about the bulldog lawyer’s financial woes emerged in legal filings in Manhattan Federal Court late Tuesday. A trial over Avenatti’s alleged shakedown of the shoe giant is scheduled for next month.

“The Government does not intend to argue that the defendant was wealthy (and the evidence shows that he was not),” Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolksy wrote.