NBA's Jason Colls says U.S. 'ready' for openly gay player - ESPN

Contents:

• JASON COLLS, FIRST OPENLY GAY ATHLETE TO PLAY NBA, MAK U.S. SPORTS HISTORY
• JASON COLLS SAYS HE'S GAY
• NBA PLAYER JASON COLLS OUT AS GAY
• NBA STAR JASON COLLS STARTED DATG HIS GAY PARTNER AFTER 8-YEAR-LONG ENGAGEMENT TO FAMO FIANCéE - MEET HIS BOYIEND
• JASON COLLS ME OUT 10 YEARS AGO, HERG A PERD OF CREASG GAY VISIBILY MEN’S SPORTS
• JASON COLLS CELEBRAT GAY 'LABEL' AND TAILS HOW CULTURE OF HOMOPHOBIC LANGUAGE HAS 'SHIFTED' THE LAST
• JASON COLLS, NBA’S FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER, SAYS RELIGN SHOULDN’T BE A REASON TO SKIP PRI EVENTS
• ‘THERE IS THAT FEAR’: JASON COLLS, FIRST OPENLY GAY NBA PLAYER, ON WHY THERE HASN’T BEEN A SEND
• IS TROYE SIVAN’S ‘RH’ SEXY FUN OR GAY DETR?
• NBA PLAYER JASON COLLS OUT AS A GAY MAN
• JASON COLLS COM OUT SI STORY, BEG FIRST OPENLY GAY ACTIVE MALE PRO ATHLETE

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.

And I'm gay, " he wrote. "I didn't set out to be the first openly gay athlete playg a major Amerin team sport.

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 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. Me personally gay men the locked room would make me unfortable.

As Amerins grow more acceptg of gay rights and same-sex marriage. 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.

NBA PLAYER JASON COLLS OUT AS GAY

"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. "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.

NBA STAR JASON COLLS STARTED DATG HIS GAY PARTNER AFTER 8-YEAR-LONG ENGAGEMENT TO FAMO FIANCéE - MEET HIS BOYIEND

"When I told Joe a few weeks ago that I was gay, he was grateful that I tsted him. 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.

"When I was playg, I had never had nversatns around what meant to be gay. "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. Image ptn, Jason Colls has been undated wh msag of supportUS basketball player Jason Colls has e out as gay, the first active male athlete a major Amerin profsnal team sport to do clared his sexualy an article for Sports Illtrated, announcg: "I'm a 34-year-old NBA center.

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

And I'm gay. "Print Barack Obama, NBA star Kobe Bryant and sportswear pany Nike were among those exprsg public NBA player John Amaechi me out 2007, but had already Monday, Mr Obama, who last year announced his support for gay marriage, lled Colls to tell him he was imprsed wh his urage and offer his support, the Whe Hoe said.

JASON COLLS CELEBRAT GAY 'LABEL' AND TAILS HOW CULTURE OF HOMOPHOBIC LANGUAGE HAS 'SHIFTED' THE LAST

'Learship mantle'Former Print Bill Clton lled the move "an important moment for profsnal sports and the history of the LGBT muny" dghter, Chelsea, who knew Colls when they were both stunts at California's Stanford Universy, tweeted: "Very proud of my iend Jason Colls for havg the strength and urage to be the first openly gay player the NBA. "The reactn was not entirely welg: An analyst for sports broadster ESPN, Chris Brosard, said on Monday he did not believe that "you n live an openly homosexual liftyle" and be a Christian. Symbolic shirt numberIn the Sports Illtrated article, Colls, who has most recently played for the Washgton Wizards and the Boston Celtics, said: "I didn't set out to be the first openly gay athlete playg a major Amerin team sport.

" Colls said he cid he should go public after his former roommate at Stanford Universy, Congrsman Joe Kennedy, scn of the Kennedy polil dynasty, marched a Boston gay pri basketball player at Stanford, Colls peted the natnal llegiate champnship tournament, reachg the fourth round.

Colls explaed that 2012 he changed his uniform number to 98 - a number wh signifince for the gay muny the US - as a gture of 1998, Matthew Shepard, a gay stunt at the Universy of Wyomg, was btally killed what has been ced as one of the most notor anti-gay hate crim the US.

JASON COLLS, NBA’S FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER, SAYS RELIGN SHOULDN’T BE A REASON TO SKIP PRI EVENTS

NBA star Jason Colls shocked the world when he revealed he was gay. Like many morn stars, Colls has joed the club of those livg their 2013 the now 42-years-old revealed he was gay and received massive support om former Print Barack Obama, NBA star Kobe Bryant, and sportg wear brand Nike. A photo of profsnal basketballer, Jason Colls | Photo: Getty ImagLIVING A LIEBefore gog public wh his inty and fearlsly sharg his love life on social media, Colls tried to blend like everyone else and was a relatnship wh former WNBA player Carolyn said she was as shocked as everyone else when he me out of the closet as she had no ia he was gay when they athlete once admted to supprsg his te self by datg different women as he did not want to be perceived as weird or have his reer brought to a sudn halt by the ld receptn he would have former Washgton Wizards star got engaged at some pot as he battled wh the feelg that gettg married and startg a fay would help silence the ragg war his head about his sexualy.

Pro sports leagu to e out as gay.

‘THERE IS THAT FEAR’: JASON COLLS, FIRST OPENLY GAY NBA PLAYER, ON WHY THERE HASN’T BEEN A SEND

Beg the one to break profsnal stereotyp, Colls received wispread media first, the former NBA star noted that he was skeptil over the reactn om other NBA players, but shockgly, Twter went ablaze wh support om fellow basketball an terview shown on ABC’s “Good Morng Ameri, ” Colls noted that he felt the untry was ready to support gay profsnals seeg the support he featured on multiple platforms and was ved by media mogul Oprah Wey where he appeared wh his fay and opened up on his engagement.

Sce Jim Buzski and I started Outsports 1999, we’d talked about an active gay player the Big Four — MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL — g out publicly. A young, gay Black athlete om the Midwt was an important summ attene that year.

They each happened to be gay. Yet was that private moment wh that young gay Black athlete that my rpect multiplied.

IS TROYE SIVAN’S ‘RH’ SEXY FUN OR GAY DETR?

Colls has seen the effects of beg out the sport firsthand, talkg repeatedly about one of his former teammat who ed anti-gay slurs the locker room eventually beg a supporter. When athlet e out the locker room, the “sual homophobia” of locker-room talk often subsis. Few gay pro athlet have e out men’s sports the last 7 years.

NBA PLAYER JASON COLLS OUT AS A GAY MAN

In 10 years, Colls remas the only active NBA player to e out publicly (Bill Kennedy is an active gay NBA referee who is out; player John Amaechi me out after retirg). When Rogers me out MLS, Michael Sam me out the NFL and Colls me out, I was nvced this was the begng of a seri of gay and bi athlet who would e out publicly men’s pro sports. Sce those three gay pro athlet me out the urse of a year, only two active athlet big-time Amerin men’s pro sports have e out publicly while on a team: Coll Mart MLS and Carl Nassib the NFL.

In other words, I, Sherman, a heterosexual lifelong basketball player, have seen a lot more ck and man-ass than many gay men. So why do certa homely straight men worry that gay men are even remotely terted sexually harassg their nve ass?

If strange women don't amass large numbers to jump your bon, then why would packs of gay men hunger for you? So how do the dynamics change when to the relatnship between gay men and betiful straight men? Do mean gay men might sexually harass betiful straight men?

JASON COLLS COM OUT SI STORY, BEG FIRST OPENLY GAY ACTIVE MALE PRO ATHLETE

I've never been betiful, but gay men have h on me, pecially at gay film ftivals where my movie The Bs of Fancydancg played to slightly terted dienc. If I had wanted to have a one-night stand wh a gay cema fan, I would've been forced to wanr the Hyatt hallways chantg, "I'm a straight Indian filmmaker lookg to explore other optns, " and hopg that my admirer heard me om si his room.