Jason Collins becomes the first openly gay player in major American pro sports

[YYC in LAX]

Originally Posted by fredr123

This is fabulous news. Good for Jason.

fyp

I had to. But yeah, I think it's great he publically admitted he was black. More to come.

[trumpethead]

Originally Posted by fredr123

This is fantastic news. Good for Jason.

Basketball players enjoy some pretty intimate body contact with one another. There are no pads and very little fabric separating their sweaty bodies. The fact that dozens, maybe even hundreds, of centers and forwards have posted him up over the years and haven't felt his erect penis against their thigh is proof that there's no reason to treat a gay athlete any different than anyone else and people who would be reluctant to play with or against a gay athlete are just stupid morons.

Way to keep it classy.

[gargamel]

Originally Posted by trumpethead

Way to keep it classy.

Personally, I thought "stupid morons" was a very polite way of putting it.

[fredr123]

Originally Posted by trumpethead

Way to keep it classy.

Also, in all the times Jason shared the locker room with his team mates, I bet the amount of gay orgies was way less than you'd expect.

Seriously, I know people have expressed concern about playing with or against gay athletes because they were afraid of what might happen if they get aroused. That argument is stupid and that's all my comments are meant to reflect.

[Travis Munroe]

averaging around 1 point per game this year and is now a UFA

Perhaps he knows he isnt going to get picked up and is using this publicity to help himself on the next chapter of his life.

Seeing as he does not have a contract right now does it count as an active player to come out as being gay? Obviously it will if he is signed by someone but if not......

[Plett25]

He is an UFA, is 34 and only plays 10 minutes a game.

My first reaction was that he was thinking that since his career is probably over anyway, it makes more sense to come out now and make an impact rather than coming out in 2,5,10 years as a former NBA player.

But then, isn't it possible that he came out thinking that it would increase his chances of getting a contract for next season? Any team that signs him would be the Dodgers for his Jackie Robinson.

[Bigtime]

Jason Collins is now the #1 trending topic on twitter WORLDWIDE.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by The Goon

Possibly because there's a greater stigma of being gay in the black community. That's my guess.

Kind of makes it surprising that this didn't happen first in a whiter league... as politically incorrect as that may be. I'm glad it's happened though.

[Coys1882]

Great news but until the answer to his statement is "so?" We've got a way to go.

[Displaced Flames fan]

Jason is an identical twin, but I'm not sure if his brother is still in the NBA or not.

Takes tons of courage to make this statement and it doesn't matter if he plays 1 minute every 10th game or if he's a superstar. Doesn't matter at all.

I hope this gives others the courage to do the same.

[fredr123]

I don't think it is necessarily homophobic to question the timing of his announcement, but I think it says a lot about our society first, that it is news in the first place and, second, that people think there are ulterior motives to him coming out. We are such cynics.

There's probably an equal chance his announcement helps prolong versus end his career. It really seems like the biggest ulterior motive here is fostering an environment in which others can feel comfortable enough to be themselves no matter their orientation.

[Pacem]

Good to see this happen. I hope he gets a contract. I hope this doesn't become an issue with other players he plays with or against.

If this goes smoothly, I hope more and more athletes come out. I think it would be great to live in a world where people don't need to worry about their sexual orientation. There is enough things in this world to worry about, this shouldn't be one of them.

Originally Posted by mykalberta

Given his "stats" I doubt this will garner much attention. If a good to great player ever "comes out" then it will be newsworthy IMO.

I just hope that if he isnt given a contract next year that people look at his stats and not his orientation as to why he wasnt given a contract.

Name 2013 Salary 2014 Salary
Jason Collins $1,352,181 UFA

http://hoopshype.com/salaries/washington.htm

Regular season
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2001–02 New Jersey 77 9 18.3 .421 .500 .701 3.9 1.1 .4 .6 4.5
2002–03 New Jersey 81 66 23.5 .414 .000 .763 4.5 1.1 .6 .5 5.7
2003–04 New Jersey 78 78 28.5 .424 .000 .739 5.1 2.0 .9 .7 5.9
2004–05 New Jersey 80 80 31.8 .412 .333 .656 6.1 1.3 .9 .9 6.4
2005–06 New Jersey 71 70 26.7 .397 .250 .512 4.8 1.0 .6 .6 3.6
2006–07 New Jersey 80 78 23.1 .364 .000 .465 4.0 .6 .5 .5 2.1
2007–08 New Jersey 43 23 15.9 .426 .000 .389 2.1 .4 .3 .2 1.4
2007–08 Memphis 31 3 15.7 .508 .000 .526 2.9 .2 .4 .6 2.6
2008–09 Minnesota 31 22 13.6 .314 .000 .464 2.3 .4 .3 .4 1.8
2009–10 Atlanta 24 0 4.8 .348 .000 .000 .6 .2 .1 .1 .7
2010–11 Atlanta 49 28 12.1 .479 1.000 .659 2.1 .4 .2 .2 2.0
2011–12 Atlanta 30 10 10.3 .400 .000 .467 1.6 .3 .1 .1 1.3
2012–13 Boston 32 7 10.3 .348 .000 .700 1.6 .2 .3 .2 1.2
2012–13 Washington 6 2 9.0 .167 .000 1.000 1.3 .3 .3 .7 .7
Career 713 476 20.8 .410 .226 .647 3.8 .9 .5 .5 3.6

He got a contract for this year and his stats at the end of last season were similar to this years stats. His stats this season aren't much different then his most recent seasons and he was still able to get a contract.

He is a big body, and teams love having a big body. If he doesn't get offered a contract I'd have a hard time using his stats as a reason why he didn't get a contract.

[Cowperson]

It's taken a long time for something like this to happen but the timing seems about right.

If anyone is interested, in June, 2001 - 12 years ago - when I was writing columns for Calgarypuck, I penned some thoughts on the probability of gays in the NHL and what might happen when someone finally stepped forward. The column is at this link:

http://www.calgarypuck.com/archive/Charlton_060401.htm

I'd say the climate in popular culture is now about right for such disclosure versus what it was back then.

I'd expect Collins to do just fine and not have much in the way of repercussions. In fact, he may find endorsements, etc easier to come by.

It will be interesting to watch.

Cowperson

[worth]

The climate in Canada vs. the US is very different. I don't think most people think it's a big deal here, but I think this is a huge deal in the States. I think this will be a problem for him next year unfortunately.

[neo45]

There may not be a next year for him. If he comes out but never plays another game is he really all that different than the gay athletes before him?

Congrats to him either way and hopefully a team signs him if only as a PR move

[MarchHare]

Originally Posted by Cowperson

It's taken a long time for something like this to happen but the timing seems about right.

If anyone is interested, in June, 2001 - 12 years ago - when I was writing columns for Calgarypuck, I penned some thoughts on the probability of gays in the NHL and what might happen when someone finally stepped forward. The column is at this link:

http://www.calgarypuck.com/archive/Charlton_060401.htm

Interesting article, especially for the time and climate when it was written.

I think you (or your unnamed retired friend) may be proven wrong on this point, though:

A friend of mine, recently retired from the game, said most gays would be found out relatively early in their junior or professional careers and run into the usual homophobic barriers. If someone actually ran the gauntlet undetected and established himself at a high level, then came out of the closet, my friend said the reaction would be somewhat circumspect. Aside from an avalanche of merciless on-ice ribbing from opponents, he predicted an outward acceptance from teammates but more latent consequences emerging soon thereafter. Friends may begin to distance themselves, the normal sharing of on-ice activities could diminish and, he predicted management would gradually find a reason to move the player along.

As a capper, endorsement opportunities would probably dissipate to zero.

Fair? No it's not.

I think the opposite is likely to happen. The first player to come out as openly gay will probably receive even more endorsement opportunities, especially if they play in a more progressive market that is known for being accepting of homosexuals (e.g. Canada, California, New York, Boston, etc.).

[Cowperson]

Originally Posted by MarchHare

Interesting article, especially for the time and climate when it was written.

I think you (or your unnamed retired friend) may be proven wrong on this point, though:



I think the opposite is likely to happen. The first player to come out as openly gay will probably receive even more endorsement opportunities, especially if they play in a more progressive market that is known for being accepting of homosexuals (e.g. Canada, California, New York, Boston, etc.).

I said that in my earlier post above actually.

Times have changed. Popular culture has changed. Every sitcom instead of just Will & Grace has a requisite, hilarious flaming gay.

Probably not too much of a coincidence he comes out just after the release of the Jackie Robinson story.

Cowperson

[sun]

Good for him. First of many, I'm sure.

[bubbsy]

good for him.

Though, considering he's at the end of his career, i doubt this makes much of a ripple effect in pro sports (ie. a flood of other atheletes coming out).

I think, unfortunately, others will still shy away from being in the open wiht this, as it could cause a definite impact on how they are perceived by teammates, opposition, coaches, potential new contract offering GMs.

[MRCboicgy]

Originally Posted by The Goon

Possibly because there's a greater stigma of being gay in the black community. That's my guess.

Yep. I think it was 2008 numbers from California prop 8 vote showed that many blacks who voted for Obama and aligned with many democratic issues switched sides on that one topic.

As for Jason, good for him - I was secretly hoping an NHL player would be first, but good on any of them.