Exclusive: ESPN Taking Rachel Nichols Off Air Permanently
The JUMP has been canceled
John Ourand has reported that ESPN is canceling THE JUMP.
Rachel Nichols will also be held off the air for the foreseeable future even though she has a year and a half left on her contract.
Nichols will likely have to take a buyout or sit on the shelf for the entire time (getting paid) until she becomes a free agent. Even though she tried her best, Nichols wasn't able to bounce back from the leaked audio where she accused ESPN of giving Maria Taylor her NBA Finals gig because Taylor was black and ESPN needed a diversity hire.
I have been told by people inside of ESPN the issue with Nichols isn't with the NBA or NBA players who still seem to like her and had no trouble still doing interviews with her (Giannis even let her hold the NBA Finals trophy). The problem was internal, black employees felt like she wasn't being punished, and it showed double standards and favoritism.
Don't cry too much for Nichols; as I said before, she still gets paid, so there are a few options.
She can take the Jemele Hill route with the early buyout and start her own thing. She could be more like Michelle Beadle and Michael Smith, take her checks until her contract expires, and move on to another company. In my opinion, that might be the best move because in a year and a half people might be more forgiving and other opportunities may be available to her.
Trust me; there will be opportunities because there is a faction of media that really doesn't think she did anything wrong and felt her rights were violated by someone leaking a private conversation. Don't be shocked if she ends back up at TNT, but you also have FS1 and other new streaming services that could be interested in her talents.
As far as who will take up her slack at ESPN. The obvious choices are either Stephen A. Smith, who never turns down a new gig, or Malika Andrews, who did a great job replacing Nichols during the NBA Finals. Don't count out a totally different show with someone like Max Kellerman involved that could include Kendrick Perkins as co-star.
Wild times at ESPN.
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