Jason Collins, NBA's First Openly Gay Player, Dead At 47

Former NBA player Jason Collins has died at the age of 47 after a battle with brain cancer.

Collins was known for being the first openly gay NBA player in league history.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver confirmed his passing in a statement in which he championed his fearlessness and dedication to changing the league’s culture through acceptance.

“Jason Collins’ impact and influence extended far beyond basketball as he helped make the NBA, WNBA and larger sports community more inclusive and welcoming for future generations,” Silver writes. “He exemplified outstanding leadership and professionalism throughout his 13-year NBA career and in his dedicated work as an NBA Cares Ambassador.  Jason will be remembered not only for breaking barriers but also for the kindness and humanity that defined his life and touched so many others.”

Silver continued, “On behalf of the NBA, I send my heartfelt condolences to Jason’s husband, Brunson, and his family, friends, and colleagues across our leagues.”

His family also released a statement through the NBA, thanking everyone who has supported him since his diagnosis.

“We are heartbroken to share that Jason Collins, our beloved husband, son, brother and uncle, has died after a valiant fight with glioblastoma,” the statement begins. “Jason changed lives in unexpected ways and was an inspiration to all who knew him and to those who admired him from afar.  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.”

In September 2025, Collins announced that he was diagnosed with a brain tumor and would begin treatment. But in December, he said it had progressed to stage 4, and he had about a year left.

“If that’s all the time I have left, I’d rather spend it trying a course of treatment that might one day be a new standard of care for everyone,” he wrote in an open letter. 

Collins famously came out at the end of the 2012-13 season, in an article for Sports Illustrated, which he begins, “I’m a 34-year-old NBA center. I’m Black. And I’m gay.”

See how social media is reacting to the death of a trailblazer below.