Tag: NBA

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President Obama calls Jason Collins, praises his courage to come “out”

President Obama called NBA center Jason Collins today after news broke that the pro basketball player had come out of the closet.

From Raw Story:

President Barack Obama called NBA player Jason Collins on Monday to praise his courage after he became the first star in big-time American professional team sports to come out as gay.

Collins, currently a free agent who has played for six teams over 12 seasons, made the announcement in a blockbuster article in Sports Illustrated. “The President called Jason Collins to express his support and said he was impressed by his courage,” said a White House aide, on condition of anonymity.

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Jason Collins – America’s first openly gay & still playing major pro athlete

NBA center Jason Collins, currently a free agent, is coming out of the closet and is now the first openly gay male player in a major pro sport, SI reports:

I’m a 34-year-old NBA center. I’m black. And I’m gay.

I didn’t set out to be the first openly gay athlete playing in a major American team sport. But since I am, I’m happy to start the conversation. I wish I wasn’t the kid in the classroom raising his hand and saying, “I’m different.” If I had my way, someone else would have already done this. Nobody has, which is why I’m raising my hand.

My journey of self-discovery and self-acknowledgement began in my hometown of Los Angeles and has taken me through two state high school championships, the NCAA Final Four and the Elite Eight, and nine playoffs in 12 NBA seasons.

I’ve played for six pro teams and have appeared in two NBA Finals. Ever heard of a parlor game called Three Degrees of Jason Collins? If you’re in the league, and I haven’t been your teammate, I surely have been one of your teammates’ teammates. Or one of your teammates’ teammates’ teammates.

Now I’m a free agent, literally and figuratively. I’ve reached that enviable state in life in which I can do pretty much what I want. And what I want is to continue to play basketball. I still love the game, and I still have something to offer. My coaches and teammates recognize that. At the same time, I want to be genuine and authentic and truthful.

Read Jason’s entire story at Sports Illustrated.

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Broadway All-Stars at the NBA All-Star Halftime 1998

My friend John just sent me this, which I had never seen.

This was the halftime show for the NBA All-Star game on February 8, 1998. Including performances from the casts of Chicago, Bring in da Noise/Bring in da Funk, Phantom of the Opera, Cats, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Jekyll & Hyde, Miss Saigon, Smokey Joe’s Cafe, Les Miserables and Titanic.

Two thoughts here: first, terrific melting pot of the shows on Broadway at the time. Really great performances from so many talented folks. Love it.

But isn’t it interesting that this was the NBA All-Star Game Halftime show? Just thinking about the audience in the stands… maybe not all huge Broadway fans?

Or maybe they were. It was Madison Square Garden, and NY-ers love Broadway.

In any case, what an huge undertaking and very well done.

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Wolf Blitzer on breakdown of NBA negotiations

The NBA has cancelled the first 2 weeks of the NBA season due to inability to come to agreement with the players union.

Excerpt from Wolf Blitzer’s excellent post about the current NBA stalemate.  Read the whole post here.

I don’t feel badly for the players or the owners at all.

At a time of severe economic hardship around the country with very high unemployment, I can’t worry about players who make $700,000 a year or $7 million a year. These are enormous salaries.

There are tens of millions of people around the country who are simply struggling to put food on the table.

The owners are very wealthy and I can’t feel sorry for them even though the NBA says 22 of the 30 teams in the league lose money.

But I do feel sorry for the fans, many of whom will simply get fed up with the NBA and will turn to college basketball and other sports for their entertainment.

And I feel especially sad when I think of all the hard-working employees who work at the arenas or in nearby neighborhoods; people who sell popcorn or beer at the stadiums; people who work at the restaurants and bars. These people can’t afford to lose a season, especially during these tough economic times. Thousands of them are about to lose their jobs.

These are the people I worry most about.

It’s simply ridiculous that the owners and the players can’t figure out a fair way to split $4 billion in revenue and play ball.