Amid her highly-publicized potential departure from ESPN, Rachel Nichols could end up joining one of their biggest competitors.
The Athletic’s Richard Deitsch said in a mailbag piece this week that Nichols could possibly return to Turner Sports, where she worked from 2013 to 2016. Deitsch adds that Nichols was considered a valuable on-air asset by Turner’s top bosses while she worked there.
TNT, one of Turner Sports’ TV stations, is perhaps the biggest challenger to ESPN when it comes to NBA coverage. Their program “Inside in the NBA” is also particularly popular among basketball fans. Nichols was a sideline reporter for the “NBA on TNT” broadcast during her time at Turner.
ESPN recently removed Nichols from all its NBA programs and cancelled her show “The Jump.” Nichols had previously gotten into a controversy over leaked comments she made about former colleague Maria Taylor.
Though she still has roughly one year left on her ESPN contract, Nichols is unlikely to appear on the air for them over that time. Once her contract does expire though, Turner Sports may be among those vying to hire her.
