“This player was very gay. At first I hated it, but in the end…

Perhaps one day, an NBA player will come out in the middle of his career and help change mentalities in high-level sport. A former Cavaliers raised the subject in an interview, with a very simple observation.

The intimate lives of NBA players are as commented on as their sporting performances, and this is also what gives this league its charm. It must be said that while some are models and maintain long relationships with childhood sweethearts, this is notably the case of LeBron James and Stephen Curry, others are much more fanciful.

Last year, for example, Zion Williamson found himself plunged into the heart of a crazy controversy with an adult film actress. Even more recently, it was the young Rockets fullback Jalen Green who made headlines, since he impregnated a celebrity 17 years his senior. You will have understood, the sexuality of players is a subject like any other in this microcosm.

Richard Jefferson talks about Jason Collins

This is why the persistent taboo around homosexuality is surprising. To date, there are only a few players who have dared to admit their “difference”, and most often once they have retired. While appearing on the show “We Might Be Drunk” on YouTube , Richard Jefferson made a big confession about a former teammate and very good gay friend.

Jason Collins is very gay. Really very gay. But he didn’t announce it during his career. We were rivals in the NCAA, and we were drafted by the Nets the same year. At first I hated him. Then he became my best friend on the team. We were later exchanged, years passed, and one day I received a notification that said he was coming out. He was not under contract at that time.

I think he figured that even without playing, he wanted to be an advocate for LGBT rights in professional sports. I sent him a message I was sad he didn’t tell me about it. But he had a girlfriend for a long time. Ultimately in the NBA we don’t care who you sleep with, as long as you’re on time for practice and you help me make money. He didn’t hit on me.

According to Richard Jefferson, NBA players shouldn’t necessarily be afraid to admit their homosexuality. For the former Cavaliers, the locker room would have nothing to say as long as the person concerned is present at training, gets involved, and helps the group in the quest for the title. Candid and naive or realistic vision? Everyone will have their own opinion.

Straight or gay, all that would matter in an NBA locker room is winning. Richard Jefferson would therefore have had no problem with Jason Collins’ sexuality with the Nets, as long as he was at the level of the franchise’s ambitions.