Update: Nichols has been booted from sideline gig for NBA
In the audio --
which was leaked by an ESPN employee to the New York Times -- Nichols is heard saying, "If you need to give [Taylor] more things to do because you are feeling pressure about your crappy longtime record on diversity -- which, by the way, I know personally from the female side of it -- like, go for it."
"Just find it somewhere else. You are not going to find it from me or taking my thing away."
While Nichols
apologized for her comments and praised Taylor on Monday, ESPN has decided to keep her on the bench for the 2021 Finals between the Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns.
The network announced rising star
Malika Andrews -- who's been an NBA insider since 2018 -- will take over the mic starting Tuesday night ... saying, "We believe this is the best decision for all concerned in order to keep the focus on the NBA Finals."
It's unclear if the move is permanent, but ESPN says Nichols will continue to host "The Jump."