Jason Collins, who made history earlier this year when he became the first openly gay player to appear in the NBA, announced his retirement Wednesday.
In a first-person essay published by Sports Illustrated, the 38-year-old Collins — who has not played this season after appearing in 22 games for the Nets last season — wrote he would use the Nets-Bucks game Wednesday night at Barclays Center as the venue for his formal retirement.
Collins came out as gay in a piece written for Sports Illustrated last May. He signed with the Nets in February and made his historic debut Feb. 23 against the Lakers to a hearty ovation from the Staples Center crowd. In his retirement announcement, Collins devoted special mention to the “significant” support he received from former teammate Jason Kidd, who coached the Nets last season and now coaches the Bucks.
Michael Sam, the first openly gay NFL draft pick, cited Collins as an influence. He has yet to appear in an NFL game. Collins closed the article with this guiding message:
“There are still no publicly gay players in the NFL, NHL or major league baseball. Believe me: They exist. Every pro sport has them. I know some of them personally. When we get to the point where a gay pro athlete is no longer forced to live in fear that he’ll be shunned by teammates or outed by tabloids, when we get to the point where he plays while his significant other waits in the family room, when we get to the point where he’s not compelled to hide his true self and is able to live an authentic life, then coming out won’t be such a big deal. But we’re not there yet.”