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Jason Collins, the NBA player who first made national headline when he “came out” in an open letter published by Sports Illustrated last year, made sports history Sunday night when he hit the court for the Brooklyn Nets.

On Sunday afternoon, Jason signed a 10-day contract with the Brooklyn Nets and later played against the LA Lakers (finishing with zero points and two rebounds in 12 minutes of action), making him the first openly gay athlete to participate in major league sports (NBA, NFL, MBA, NHL).

The signing reunited Jason with former teammate turned Nets head coach Jason Kidd (shown atop) whom he played with him in New Jersey from 2001-08. Since the landmark announcement, support for Jason has been wide and mainly positive.

Nets general manager Billy King said in a statement.

“The decision to sign Jason was a basketball decision. 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.”