Outspoken

Until yesterday, the most fascinating fact about 12-year transient center Jason Collins was that he had a twin brother, Jarron, who also played professional basketball. Not anymore. On Tuesday, Collins became the first male athlete in one of the four major sports to disclose that he is gay prior to retiring, in an articulate, assured essay he wrote for Sports Illustrated that will be the magazine's cover story.

Now that Collins has come out, he's received an outpouring of support. The athletic director at Collins' alma mater, Stanford, and the owner of the Washington Wizards, the team Collins most recently played for, applauded the admission. Players ranging from rookie Bradley Beal to 15-time All-Star Kobe Bryant to his aptly named ex-teammate Rudy Gay offered words of encouragement*. Warriors President Rick Welts, who came out in 2011, praised Collins, as did the sitting U.S. President, Barack Obama, along with former POTUS Bill Clinton. Almost all who shared sentiments stood by Collins. Shane Battier suggested Collins' sexuality, like his skin color, shouldn't matter. "Whether he is straight, gay, black, white, from Earth, or from Mars is immaterial," was Battier's down-to-Earth attitude. He's correct. The Association has already accepted a Martian: Dennis Rodman.

Collins career might have come to a close and it doesn't have to do him with coming out of the closet. His contract is up and he's 34. He has been on a half-dozen teams and was traded in season this year. His twin's time ended two seasons ago. He played in only 38 games in 2012-13, averaging one point and one-and-a-half rebounds in 10 minutes, which is not far off his underwhelming career averages of 3.6 ppg and 3.8 rpg. Even if his stats stood out, Collins' contributions on the court would be nothing next to those he has made - and will make - to the gay rights movement. Those are immeasurable.

*"Home of the free because of the brave," Gay tweeted, making us wonder if hooping in Canada has caused Gay to forget the lyrics to "The Star-Spangled Banner."