Jason Paul Collins (December 2, 1978 – May 12, 2026) was an American professional basketball player who played as a center in the NBA for 13 seasons. He played college basketball at Stanford, where he was named a third-team All-American in 2001. Collins was picked 18th overall by the Houston Rockets in the 2001 NBA draft and later played for several teams, including the New Jersey Nets, Memphis Grizzlies, Minnesota Timberwolves, Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics, Washington Wizards, and Brooklyn Nets.
After the 2012–13 NBA season, Collins publicly came out as gay. He became a free agent and did not return to the NBA until February 2014, when he signed with the Nets. This made him the first openly gay athlete to play in any of the four major North American pro sports leagues. In 2014, Collins appeared on the cover of Time’s “100 Most Influential People in the World.” He died from glioblastoma on May 12, 2026, at age 47.
Collins was born in the Northridge area of Los Angeles, California. He arrived eight minutes before his twin brother, Jarron, who also went on to play in the NBA.
Both brothers graduated from Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles. Together, they won two California Interscholastic Federation state titles over four years, finishing with a combined record of 123–10. Collins set a state record with 1,500 career rebounds. His backup was future actor Jason Segel, who, according to USA Today, might have become the most famous player from the team.
Collins played at Stanford University alongside his brother Jarron in the Pac-10 Conference. As a freshman in 1997–98, he played only one game before a knee injury sidelined him for the season. That year, Stanford reached the Final Four for the first time since 1942. After appearing in just eight games over his first two seasons, Collins played in 31 games and started 11 as a junior in 1999–2000. He averaged 8.3 points and 6.1 rebounds, helping Stanford tie for the Pac-10 title and earn a No. 1 seed in the 2000 NCAA tournament.
In his senior year (2000–01), Collins averaged 14.5 points and 7.8 rebounds. He made the All-Pac-10 first team, and the National Association of Basketball Coaches named him to their third-team All-American list. Stanford won the Pac-10 championship and reached the Elite Eight in the 2001 NCAA tournament. Collins finished his college career with the highest field goal percentage (.608) and third-most blocked shots (89) in Stanford history.
Collins averaged 3.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, 0.5 blocks, and 41 percent shooting in his NBA career, and never averaged more than seven points or seven rebounds in a season. However, the basketball analytics community valued his defense using metrics not typically reflected in box scores. Collins was a physical post defender, boxed out effectively, and excelled at setting screens. He executed defensive strategies precisely, read opponents well, and communicated effectively on defense. He was also recognized as a team leader and consistently praised for his professionalism and intelligence on the court.
Collins was in a relationship with former WNBA center Carolyn Moos for eight years. They were engaged, but Collins called off the wedding in 2009.
In January 2014, The Hollywood Reporter shared that Collins was dating film producer Brunson Green. They married in May 2025.
On September 11, 2025, the NBA released a statement from Collins’s family about his ongoing treatment for a brain tumor. On December 11, Collins announced he had been diagnosed with “stage 4 glioblastoma.”
Collins died at his home in Los Angeles on May 12, 2026, at age 47.
