Brooklyn Nets Sign Jason Collins for Rest of Season

NBA's first openly gay player will play out the rest of the season with the New York team

By Brandi Fowler Mar 16, 2014 3:06 AMTags
Jason CollinsKarl Gehring/The Denver Post via Getty Images

Jason Collins will be finishing out the rest of the NBA season with the Brooklyn Nets.

After completing his second 10-day contract with the team, the Nets signed the 34-year-old center for the remainder of the season Saturday, according to ESPN.

"It's cool. Thank you to the Nets organization, coaches and players, the team is playing really well right now, and I'm glad to continue to be here," Collins said of the signing.

Collins originally signed his first contract with the team in February, with Nets' General Manager Billy King saying in a statement, "The decision to sign Jason was a basketball decision."

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"We needed to increase our depth inside, and with his experience and size, we felt he was the right choice for a 10-day contract."

Since signing that contract, Collins became the NBA's first openly gay player after coming out last April in Sports Illustrated; His No. 98 jersey has become a top-seller.

This is Collins' 13th season playing in the NBA, including six previous seasons with the Nets from 2001-2007.