Jason Collins, the NBA Center who came out of the closet today and is now the first active male openly gay athlete in a major professional sport, has a twin brother also in the NBA who spent eight seasons with the Jazz.
Says Jarron in a separate SI piece:
This announcement will be surprising to some people. I already anticipate the questions: "Are you the gay twin or the straight one?" This is uncharted territory, and no one can predict how it will play out. It's a big deal — but it's also not a big deal. When the media crush is over, Jason will have the strength to deal with whatever challenges come from being openly gay.
As for us, we're still going to give each other grief. (He's still going to be a terrible golfer; he's still the guy who could help more with changing my kids' diapers.) We'll still be competitive in our way. As kids we were always pushing each other, whether it was for good grades or for possession of the remote control. As NBA players we both wanted to be stronger, so each summer we would have a "liftoff" to see who could put up more weight.
Today, Jason has taken a huge weight off his shoulders. And I've never been more proud of him.
Watch an NBA.com profile of the brothers from 2007, AFTER THE JUMP…
