Jason Collins thankful for outpouring of support

Except for the two hours I spent watching the Tom Cruise sci-fi flick Oblivion this evening, I’ve been completely absorbed in the story of NBA player Jason Collins coming out as gay.

The timing was right for someone to do this and Jason has stepped forward.

I’ve read some obnoxious anti-gay things on Twitter and elsewhere but mostly, the reaction has been amazingly positive from President Obama calling Jason today and Kobe Bryant quickly tweeting his support.

Collins is grateful.

“All the support I have received today is truly inspirational,’ he wrote in a tweet this evening. ‘I knew that I was choosing the road less traveled but I’m not walking it alone.’

Collins shocked the sports world by coming out publicly in a first-person essay in Sports Illustrated magazine. He is the first active male player in one of the four major team sports in the US to ever come out during his playing career.

Tweeted the NBA player: ‘Thank you to everyone who has reached out to me thru email, texts, calls, tweets, letters, and every other form of communication.’

Collins will appear on ABC’s Good Morning America Tuesday to discuss his history-making decision to come out.