Jason Collins Receives a Standing Ovation When He Checked in for the Brookly Nets Sunday Night [VIDEO]

Signing Jason Collins--an openly gay athlete--to a 10-day contract was a pretty big step, but the real step would be whether he actually played in a game for the Brooklyn Nets.

It looks like fans didn't have to wait and see if/when that would happen.

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The same day he signed his 10-day contract the big man was inserted in to the game playing 11 minutes. When his time comes and he enters the game you can hear the support from the crowd. It was not quite a standing ovation, but man fans were on their feet.

He didn't score, but did pull down a pair of rebounds and a steal to go with five fouls.



What may be more telling about this game and the future for gay athletes in sports is how long the cheer lasted. It was nice, but it wasn't overly long or anything. It was the kind of ovation you would expect to hear when a star player returns from injury after a long layoff.

So what does it mean? The fans recognize the significance, but they also know what matters--the game.

It doesn't matter who plays it; just that it continues on.

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