Jason Colls first openly gay active player - ESPN

Contents:

• JASON COLLS, FIRST OPENLY GAY ATHLETE TO PLAY NBA, MAK U.S. SPORTS HISTORY
• JASON COLLS SAYS HE'S GAY
• HERE ARE THE 6 GAY MEN WHO HAVE BEEN OUT PUBLICLY WHILE PETG PRO BASKETBALL
• RUMOR: LAKERS, WARRRS AMONG POTENTIAL RUDY GAY SUORS EE AGENCY
• NBA'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER ON NHL PRI NIGHT NTROVERSY: 'RELIGN SHOULD NOT BE A E FOR DIVISN'
• 3 PRO-BASKETBALL PLAYERS WHO ARE GAY, FEATURG ISAAC HUMPHRI AND MORE
• NBA VETERAN JASON COLLS OUT AS GAY
• 5 GAY ATHLET WHO ARE OUT AND PROUD
• THE ONLY 3 OUT, GAY NBA PLAYERS IN HISTORY
• JASON COLLS, FIRST OPENLY GAY N.B.A. PLAYER, SIGNS WH NETS AND APPEARS GAME
• JASON COLLS ME OUT 10 YEARS AGO, HERG A PERD OF CREASG GAY VISIBILY MEN’S SPORTS

JASON COLLS, FIRST OPENLY GAY ATHLETE TO PLAY NBA, MAK U.S. SPORTS HISTORY

On Febary 23, 2014, Brooklyn Nets center Jason Colls be the first openly gay athlete to play a game the Uned Stat’ four major profsnal leagu. The 35-year-old journeyman plays 10 srels mut, rerdg two rebounds and five fouls the Nets’ 108-102 victory over the Los Angel May 2013, Colls revealed he is gay a first-person say  Sports Illtrated. In 2021, Las Vegas Rairs fensive leman Carl Nassib beme the first active NFL player to announce he is gay.

Jason Colls says he's news servicApr 29, 2013, 11:46 AM ETNBA center Jason Colls on Monday announced that he's gay a story for Sports Illtrated, beg the first active player one of the four major Amerin profsnal team sports to announce that he is gay. Last year, durg his re-electn mpaign, Print Barack Obama announced his support for gay after Colls disclosed his sexualy, Obama reached out by phone, exprsg his support and tellg Colls he was imprsed by his urage, the Whe Hoe Print Bill Clton, whose dghter Chelsea attend Stanford wh Colls, also appld Colls' announcement. "Jason's announcement today is an important moment for profsnal sports and the history of the LGBT [lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr] muny, " he said a statement.

"He said the first relative he told he was gay was his nt Teri, who is a superr urt judge San Francis. He said she told him, "I've known you were gay for years, " which ma him "fortable my own sk.

JASON COLLS SAYS HE'S GAY

"Colls said he realized he need to make his sexual orientatn public when his former roommate at Stanford, Massachetts ngrsman Joe Kennedy, who is straight, marched Boston's Gay Pri Para last Boston Marathon bombgs earlier this month then rerced to him "that I shouldn't wa for the circumstanc of my g out to be perfect. Colls says he quietly ma a statement for gay rights even while keepg his sexual orientatn a secret. 98 wh the Celtics and Wizards -- 1998 was the year that Matthew Shepard, a gay llege stunt Wyomg, was killed, and the Trevor Project, a suici preventn anizatn, was found.

"Sayg 'I'm gay' sets a new standard of honty, openns and teamwork that will posively affect athlet and fans at every level of sports. 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.

The LGBT movement emerged as early as the 1870s, but homosexual rights groups didn't appear until after World War II September 1945. To add onto the topic of the Warrrs, print Rick Welts me out as gay an terview wh the New York Tim 2011. Homophobia is somethg that shouldn't have a place sports bee LGBT folks n be fans, media members, employe and executiv too.

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

" 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. Denver Nuggets power forward Kenh Faried has been a gay rights supporter for a long time.

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

In 2011, mors surfaced, claimg that Selby was gay after an alleged email to another man was leaked. 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.

Asi om his open support for gay rights, he also ns the Steve Nash Foundatn, which helps children who are affected by poverty, illns, abe or neglect, and creat opportuny for tn, play, and empowerment, Phoenix, Arizona, and Brish Columbia, Canada.

He told Good Day LA, "I thk gay marriage, same-sex marriage is them go through what we go through. In his hman year at Villanova, he first me out as gay to his teammate and roommate Mike Villa before nfsg to his parents three months later.

NBA'S FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER ON NHL PRI NIGHT NTROVERSY: 'RELIGN SHOULD NOT BE A E FOR DIVISN'

There's hardly any Hispanic players, no Asian-Amerins, so that there's no openly gay players is no real surprise.

Last year, the NBA moved s 2017 All-Star Game out of Charlotte, North Carola, due to the state's law that lims anti-discrimatn protectns for lbian, gay and transgenr people. Recently fishg up his 17th NBA season, Rudy Gay is nearg the end of the le on what has been a remarkable reer. He may not have a champnship rg, nor any All-Star appearanc, but Gay has always been a well-rpected player across this league and he's been one of the most unrappreciated forwards sce beg drafted eighth overall 2006.

3 PRO-BASKETBALL PLAYERS WHO ARE GAY, FEATURG ISAAC HUMPHRI AND MORE

A member of the Memphis Grizzli, San Anton Spurs, Sacramento Kgs and Toronto Raptors earlier his reer, Gay most recently spent the last two seasons wh the Utah Jazz.

Acrdg to HoopsHype's Michael Stto, the Los Angel Lakers, Goln State Warrrs, Dallas Mavericks, Chigo Bulls, and New Orleans Pelins are all teams Gay is expected to draw tert om now that he is a ee agent.

While his overall productn and mut cled the last two seasons Utah, Gay still managed to average 6. Earlier his reer, Gay was a player who was known for srg at least 20 pots per game and he's always been a dangero mid-range shooter. He's not only someone who will be ready to e off the bench when his number is lled, but Gay n also be a great mentor for young players any team has at the small forward or power forward posns.

NBA VETERAN JASON COLLS OUT AS GAY

Very few teams the league are able to have guys wh 17-pl years of NBA experience and this is what Gay brgs to the table at this pot his reer.

Time will tell what anizatn Rudy Gay will ntue his NBA reer wh, as he is not ready to end his basketball journey jt yet.

Former NBA player Jason Colls, who beme the first openly gay athlete to play one of the four major North Amerin sports leagu, spoke out this week about the recent wave of NHL players and teams optg out of Pri Night, sayg that "relign should not be a e for divisn.

5 GAY ATHLET WHO ARE OUT AND PROUD

After returng to the Nets 2014, he beme the first openly gay athlete to play one of the four major North Amerin sports leagu.

Back 2007, John Amaechi ma NBA history when he beme the first current or former NBA player to publicly e out as gay. The news was massive nsirg the league had gone so long whout havg an openly gay player, earng him plenty of support om his former teammat.

THE ONLY 3 OUT, GAY NBA PLAYERS IN HISTORY

Six years before, the midst of his two-year stt wh the Orlando Magic, Amaechi was dubbed one of the NBA's 'most likely to be gay' players by a news outlet. “I am simply dog what a good person of nscience would do, which is makg people aware that gay people don’t jt look like Jack om ‘Will and Grace, ’". The followg season, after signg wh the Brooklyn Nets thanks to his iendship wh Jason Kidd, Colls beme the first gay player to play an NBA game.

Charl Barkley and Kev Durant have been two of NBA history’s most outspoken supporters of gay athlet and the LGBTQ muny. In a society that unfairly puts a stigma on gay, lbian, bisexual, transgenr and other such dividuals, their support has been happily embraced.

JASON COLLS, FIRST OPENLY GAY N.B.A. PLAYER, SIGNS WH NETS AND APPEARS GAME

Back 2017, durg the NBA’s Pri Para New York Cy, Durant went full blast his support of high-profile homosexuals. If he is somehow lked to homophobic slurs, uld mean that his support is nothg but a mere show.

JASON COLLS ME OUT 10 YEARS AGO, HERG A PERD OF CREASG GAY VISIBILY MEN’S SPORTS

Wh the Stanford alumn revealg he was a homosexual, the sports world was forced to tackle the lite issue of gay athlet wh their ranks.

Before Jason Colls stunned the NBA and the sportg world wh his admissn of beg gay, Steve Nash was already advotg genr equaly.

Durant was only a two-time All-Star when “Nashty” offered his unequivol support for homosexuals. The Canadian superstar was the first high-profile athlete to support former Phoenix Suns team print Rick Welts, who admted he was a homosexual.