It's been over a year and a half since Rachel Nichols left ESPN in the aftermath of the Maria Taylor situation. Since then, Nichols has been absent from the usual sports networks, instead choosing to join Showtime to continue her basketball coverage. She's made spot appearances elsewhere but Showtime was her only fulltime gig until the news broke that she'd be a regular contributor to the post-Shannon Sharpe version of Undisputed.

This is news that may have slipped under the radar to some because the other names involved (Richard Sherman, Keyshawn Johnson, and Michael Irvin) demanded much of the attention. But Nichols is very much part of the show and made her debut today alongside Johnson. It was rather jarring seeing her sitting across from Skip Bayless.

After a few days it remains unclear what the rotation will be on Undisputed. The first couple of days featured the three former players-turned-media personalities. Today it started off with Sherman and Bayless before moving to Nichols and Johnson with no indication to whether Irvin would make an appearance today. Nichols' expertise lays in the NBA so it's probable that she'll only be around when that is going to be a main talking point on the day's show. That won't happen terribly often in the fall, so maybe we'll see her more in the winter and spring.

The new Undisputed is coming together. Only time will tell if it ends up a better product than what came before.

This article was originally published on thebiglead as Rachel Nichols Makes 'Undisputed' Debut, Returns to Sports Debate Realm .