The NBA Has An Openly Gay Player: What Chang? : NPR

Contents:

• A GAY NBA FAN FOUND 78 HOMOPHOBIC TWEETS BY 40 PLAYERS ON 23 TEAMS
• HERE ARE THE 6 GAY MEN WHO HAVE BEEN OUT PUBLICLY WHILE PETG PRO BASKETBALL
• 5 GAY ATHLET WHO ARE OUT AND PROUD
• THE ONLY 3 OUT, GAY NBA PLAYERS IN HISTORY
• TOP 3 NBA PLAYERS WHO ARE GAY FEAT. JASON COLLS AND MORE
• BILL KENNEDY OUT AS SEND ACTIVE OPENLY GAY NBA OFFICIAL
• THE NBA HAS AN OPENLY GAY PLAYER: WHAT CHANG?
• JASON COLLS SAYS HE'S GAY
• RUMOR: LAKERS, WARRRS AMONG POTENTIAL RUDY GAY SUORS EE AGENCY
• STTO’S LATT: TUCKER, GAY, SUMNER, NOEL
• NBA RUMORS: JAM HARN TRA TALKS, JOEL EMBIID, PJ TUCKER, RUDY GAY, LAKERS, WARRRS, BUCKS, MORE

A GAY NBA FAN FOUND 78 HOMOPHOBIC TWEETS BY 40 PLAYERS ON 23 TEAMS

The ments are among 78 tweets om 36 current and active NBA players on teams that are homophobic language, nature or even tent (four other players were on a roster when the list was piled last month, but they are no longer on an NBA team). The players clu CJ McCollum, the print of the Natnal Basketball Players Assn., who tweeted “no homo, ” as well as superstar Kev Durant, who tweeted “shut up fag boy. “I don’t re how long ago was, shows the person’s character, my opn, ” said Derrick Gordon, who me out publicly as gay while playg basketball at UMass and who now plays profsnally Germany.

HERE ARE THE 6 GAY MEN WHO HAVE BEEN OUT PUBLICLY WHILE PETG PRO BASKETBALL

The Denver Nuggets and Utah Jazz each have four players on the list of NBA athlet who created anti-gay tweets, while the Chigo Bulls currently have three players who tweeted homophobic msag. Not cintally, Jason Colls beme the first active NBA player to e out as gay 2013, raisg signifint awarens of LGBTQ issu — and the prence of gay players — the NBA.

“Culture as a whole has changed, ” said Anthony Nimo, a succsful high school basketball ach New York who me out publicly as gay several years ago.

5 GAY ATHLET WHO ARE OUT AND PROUD

Colls — who played as an openly gay player the last uple regular-season months and then playoffs of the 2013-14 season — has been speakg to NBA rooki at the league’s annual symposium sce 2015. Readg [the tweets] remd me a lot of my journal that I kept, and I stopped after two weeks, bee was jt … you hear , but you don’t really realize how much sual homophobia there was.

Speakg om my experience, there is a disnnect sometim between someone who sual homophobia, and then once you show them who you are, they will step up and have your back.

Oshae Brissett of the Indiana Pacers, now 23, was 12 and 13 when he posted ne homophobic tweets a two-year span. One mon slur ed var tweets was “no homo, ” which me to vogue over 10 years ago as a way for a man to pliment another man whout beg taken “the wrong way.

THE ONLY 3 OUT, GAY NBA PLAYERS IN HISTORY

As a ach and tor, Nimo said he still hears “no homo” around teenagers — even beg out as a gay man — though the culture basketball has improved. The onle prence of the tweets 2022, even though wrten years ago, pots to a cultural problem wh athlet and anti-gay language. Pl Reed“Bch be gay today, bi tommorow, and pregnant sunday ha”/2014 “Why is so many niggas drs up like girls and putt on wigs tryna be funny.

Mallm Hill“homo# LOL”/2011Zach LaVe “@perrnTF @juice_wilson49 both y’all r gay”/2014Javonte Green“You gay for subbg”/2016Cleveland Cavaliers. Oshae Brissett“This guy is sooooo gay on my b”/2012“you want all the guys on the street to love you ew your gay”/2012“you sound like a girl.. Youyr so gay lool”/2012“OMFG why gods good name would anyone cut them self for a fag”/2013“Callg your iend a fag on bbm but then you realize that you sent to your mom”/2012“you are a fag”/2013“follow me back fag”/2012“get off my twter you fag/2013@TheRealtEver_ fag”/2012Hoton Rockets.

Montrezl Harrell“no u fag you are talkg to the worlds ltlt man Jordan smh”/2012“you gay don’t @ me no more for real”/2011“This nigga the barber shop is gay as hell smh”/2012“SpongeBob Tho >> ^__^ ♥♥he gay”/2012“Trezl & India Fsg About Spongebob -__- Lol he’s gay”/2012. Facundo Campazzo“ gay”/2016Jam Ennis III“fag lol”/2012“@ChristianPerez1: Tanic is on:) (no homo)” I love that move”/2011JaMychal Green“dnt play w me koolaid will get put on his head if he try some gay”/2010“lol i got you i nt wave thats gay but ill salute you”/2011“Fna load my iPod up w new mic while I tch up on some #Dexter season 3...

TOP 3 NBA PLAYERS WHO ARE GAY FEAT. JASON COLLS AND MORE

Cuz he gy w da homo azzss Shyt lmao/2010Nah’Shon “Bon” Hyland“you chicks really be blsed wh beg pretty & you really turn gay?? Jared Butler“That gay du msed up”/2014Jordan Clarkson“naw Rick #yotillsglebee u still got homo tennci lol”/2010Rudy Gay “Can someone tell @RasualButler45 to holla at me! Robert Covgton“@CIROCOBAMA252 nigga you gay lol”/2011Norman Powell“@PureEnouGhh you be act gay yo”/2010Phoenix Suns.

BILL KENNEDY OUT AS SEND ACTIVE OPENLY GAY NBA OFFICIAL

Atralian A-League soccer star Josh Cavallo me out as gay an October vio posted to his social media, beg hailed as the first current male top-flight profsnal soccer player to publicly do so. "He ntued: "Growg up I always felt the need to hi myself, you know, bee I was ashamed, and ashamed I'll never be able to do what I love and be gay.

THE NBA HAS AN OPENLY GAY PLAYER: WHAT CHANG?

In a September terview wh USA Today, 25-year-old mor league baseball player beme the only active baseball profsnal to be out as gay! The 28-year-old Natnal Football League player and Rairs fensive leman ma history when he me out as gay on Instagram durg Pri Month, beg the first veteran NFL player to e out as gay while signed to a regular-season ntract.

The Bachelor star and former football player (who was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted ee agent and was on the practice squad of the Oakland Rairs and the Philalphia Eagl) me out as gay April, sayg he had fally e to terms wh his sexualy and the "next step all of this was sort of lettg people know. Corey Walsh, the 27-year-old pro BMX rir and Vans spokperson, said he isn't normally the type of person to "let people " on his personal life, but felt was important to e out as gay a March Instagram post bee "there are a lot of people still stgglg wh the same suatns" and he "jt wanted to let people know that they are not alone. Champn long track speedskater Conor McDermott-Mostowy never hid beg gay om his fay, iends, and fellow athlet, but he also wasn't one to rate his locker wh rabow Pri flags eher.

JASON COLLS SAYS HE'S GAY

He ially feared negative stereotyp about gay male athlet but threw those ncerns asi after his two-tle performance at the U. When John Amaechi me out publicly 2007, he was ahead of his time, sharg that he’s gay and a former profsnal basketball player.

Sce Colls showed the world you uld be a gay man profsnal basketball, there has been a trickle of gay athlet to follow, most recently former NBA player and current Atralian pro basketball player Isaac Humphri. Quickly she learned that, by then, the NBA and WNBA had veloped a mutual culture of cln for gay and lbian people. So when two gay men — Drew Tagliabue wh PFLAG and Ken Mehlman wh GLSEN — approached her about embracg the LGBTQ muny, Behrens was all ears.

It was an ia prented by GLSEN — a PSA about stampg out the pejorative term “that’s so gay” — that piqued her tert. So 2011 the NBA fund and shot a PSA wh Grant Hill and Jared Dudley talkg about the need to elimate “sually homophobic” language om sports and society.

RUMOR: LAKERS, WARRRS AMONG POTENTIAL RUDY GAY SUORS EE AGENCY

As Welts built a Hall of Fame reer the NBA ont office, as well as wh the Suns and Goln State Warrrs, his secret — he was gay wh a boyiend — stuck wh him. Those NBA teams brought attus about gays and lbians that were at tim fearful their prence the WNBA might sre away non-LGBTQ fans. Shortly after, Lippard and Welts — who had heard about each other whispers about gay men the league — fed a iendship, and Welts beme an important mentor for Lippard.

STTO’S LATT: TUCKER, GAY, SUMNER, NOEL

“Adam and I uld have wonrful nversatns about the work environments we were , and beg gay this kd of dtry and what we uld acplish beg out and the abily to share that.

What’s the impact of havg someone like Jemison — the rare gay Black woman wh a seat at the table a ont office Amerin sports, who has also worked all of the Big Four men’s pro sports — beg so out and proud? Y, those early days of the WNBA were a b rougher wh nversatns wh the league about how to addrs the gay and lbian prence the league. The LGBT movement emerged as early as the 1870s, but homosexual rights groups didn't appear until after World War II September 1945.

NBA RUMORS: JAM HARN TRA TALKS, JOEL EMBIID, PJ TUCKER, RUDY GAY, LAKERS, WARRRS, BUCKS, MORE

Homophobia is somethg that shouldn't have a place sports bee LGBT folks n be fans, media members, employe and executiv too. " We, as a untry, need to une and not jt bee of the tragic gay nightclub shootg Orlando, Florida, that occurred last summer.

His fay reportedly had mixed emotns towards the announcement, but he still changed the game, beg the first Divisn I men's basketball player to e out as gay and play gam. He also received praise om Colls and former NFL fensive end Michael Sam, who beme the first openly gay football player.

When then-Phoenix Suns print and CEO Rick Welts me out as gay May 2011, former NBA pot guard Steve Nash pledged his support favor of the LGBT muny. Nash said the vio, "A growg number of profsnal athlet are speakg out support of gay and lbian upl gettg married, I'm proud to be one of them.