Although Jason Collins should be admired for his courage to be the first openly gay NBA player, he should be ever more applauded for joining the slightly ramshackled Brooklyn Nets today.

While already proven brave, Collins shows that he may also be of the shrewd athlete as well. Sports Illustrated tells us that he and the Nets have agreed on a 10-day contract, and we’ll see him play later today in a Nets jersey against the Lakers.

Granted, the team is not doomed to failure– Despite being unceremoniously dumped by one of the most famous Brooklynites and pretty much the spokesperson of the team, Jay-Z, the team is currently doing average at best with a 25-28 record while clinging to the last playoff spot for dear life. Now, adding Jason Collins to the team is an additional plus; Collins has already played with the two power players of the Nets, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce, in Boston. He was also teammates with Nets head coach Jason Kidd in the earlier 2000s.

Jason Collins ranked first in Stanford’s field goal percentage history, and is a 13-year NBA veteran in great shape. Strangely though, Collins hasn’t been signed to a team in close to nine months. Is it just a coincidence that it has also been almost nine months since he publicly announced his homosexuality? It would be hard not to connect the two.

Despite the issues that still seem unavoidable in today’s time, we congratulate Jason Collins as well as the Brooklyn Nets. Collins is a 7-foot defensive power player who has stifled some of the strongest centers such as Dwight Howard, and his experience and added size to the Brooklyn Nets roster might be exactly what the team needs to boost their rankings. Be sure to check him out tonight.

Image via NDN