Jason Collins, NBA’s first out gay player, dies aged 47 of brain tumor

Jason Collins, the NBA’s first openly gay player, who went on to become a pioneer for inclusion and an ambassador for the league, has died after an eight-month battle with an aggressive form of a brain tumor, his family announced on Tuesday.

Collins spent 13 years as a player in the league for six different franchises, including the Boston Celtics and the New Jersey Nets. He revealed in 2013 that he was gay, an announcement that came toward the end of his playing career.

Collins had been diagnosed with stage 4 glioblastoma, which has an extremely low survival rate. He was 47.

“Jason changed lives in unexpected ways and was an inspiration to all who knew him and to those who admired him from afar,” Collins’ family said in a statement released through the NBA. “We are grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers over the past eight months and for the exceptional medical care Jason received from his doctors and nurses. Our family will miss him dearly.”

Just last week, Collins received the inaugural Bill Walton Global Champion Award at the Green Sports Alliance Summit. He was too ill to attend and his twin brother, former NBA player Jarron Collins, accepted the award for him.

“I told my brother this before I came here: he’s the bravest, strongest man I’ve ever known,” Jarron Collins said while accepting that award.