Monday: Would Jason Collins be an NBA player if it wasn't openly gay?

It’s Monday. Time to breakdown the weekend’s biggest story.

Canada took Olympic Gold, Duke knocked off No. 1 Syracuse and Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the Daytona 500.

But I’m going to talk about Jason Collins.

For those of you that don’t know, Collins became the first openly gay athlete to play in the four major professional sports on Sunday. He signed a 10-day contract with the Brooklyn Nets in the morning and played in a game later that night.

This story blew up. If it wasn't for the Daytona 500, Sportscenter would have led with it. The show still ended up spending a lot of time on Collins.

As I was watching ESPN overanalyze everything Sunday night, my roommate asked me something as a Collins’ press conference was airing.

“Who has the guts to ask the question that everyone is thinking about?”

"What question?" I asked

"Would Collins be playing basketball in the NBA if he wasn’t gay?" He said. 

Now, I have nothing but respect for Collins and guys like Michael Sam, who will likely become the first openly gay football in the NFL. It takes guts to do what they did, and their lives will never be the same because of it. I want to make that clear.

But the answer to this question is: I don’t know.

I’m not the one running the Nets’ front office or looking at other big men—Collins is a 7-foot center—in the league. I’m no expert on whether Collins is good enough to play in the NBA.

However, the question deserves to be asked. It needs to be asked.

Why? 

Look at the facts.

Collins hadn’t played a game in almost a year before Brooklyn signed him. Even before then, he only averaged 3 points and 3 rebounds for his career. I could have counted on my own two hands how many people knew who he was before he announced he was gay.

He wasn’t exactly getting a whole lot of attention from NBA offices before he announced either. And now Sportscenter is showing every rebound, screen or blocked shot Collins is a part of.

Collins even admitted that since coming out, his life has made a turn for the best.

“Life is so much better for me.”

So this question deserves at least acknowledgement, especially in Collins’ case.

Not that Sam shouldn’t be asked the same questions when he signs with an NFL squad, but everyone thought he was going to be a solid pro football player before he said he came out.

I have nothing against Collins and I have no reason to think that he shouldn’t be an NBA player.

But if you’re a journalist and you are in that press conference after the signing, you have to ask the question.

I want to hear Collins’ answer, because I don’t have one.

Hot Reads:

-Phenomenal story about life in Dunk City, Fla., after Florida Gulf Coast’s Cinderella run.

-The Winter Olympics closed with a bang Sunday. 

-Dale Earnhardt Jr. won the Daytona 500 Sunday, a huge win for NASCAR. 

-Takeaways from this weekend's portion of the NFL Combine.

-Nebraska men's basketball continues to roll, winning its fifth straight Sunday. 

Thanks for reading and have a great start to your week! 

Reach me at: award6344@gmail.com

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