Charles Barkley gets it.
In the wake of the death from cancer of sports inclusion icon Jason Collins this week, Barkley told viewers of ESPN's Inside the NBA on Wednesday night where the United States of America stands in 2026 in embracing male athletes who are not straight.
"We live in a homophobic society, and that’s unfortunate,” he said. The "unfortunate" part, Barkley explained, is that there are many closeted male athletes playing today in professional sports who refuse to publicly declare they are gay, bisexual, or queer. In fact, since Collins came out in 2013, no other active NBA player has done so.
- YouTube youtu.be
Carl Nassib, then of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders, made history when he came out as an active player in 2023. R.K. Russell, then a free agent, came out as bi in 2019 but never returned to the NFL. There's actually a long list of veteran athletes in the NFL and MLB — and a handful of active minor league ballplayers — who came out when their playing career was no longer at risk. And to those who don't understand the risk, just ask Michael Sam.
“Anybody who thinks we ain’t got a bunch of gay players in all sports, they’re just stupid,” he said. “But there is such an atmosphere toward the gay community, and that’s what’s really unfortunate.”
Again, "unfortunate," because as Out reported as far back as 2013, there is actually a fortune to be made if an active pro athlete comes out publicly. Nike reportedly promised a sweet endorsement deal to the first to do so.
"They made it clear to me Nike would embrace it," said the former Phoenix Suns exec, Rick Welts, after he himself came out as gay. "The player who does it, they're going to be amazed at the additional opportunities that are put on the table, not the ones that are taken off."
It was surprising to some that as Barkley made his point about where things stand, he didn't go off on a tangent, as he is known to do. Barkley is so famous for saying off-the-wall things into a microphone that Saturday Night Live frequently lampoons his unbridled, uncensored, and sometimes unintelligible comments. Longtime SNL regular Kenan Thompson did so again just last month.
- YouTube youtu.be
Barkley’s thoughts about closeted athletes refusing to come out were actually in response to ESPN analyst Kenny Smith, who said on Wednesday's program that it's no longer a big deal. Smith said he believed society had progressed past someone being openly gay as something notable. To Smith, Jason Collins’ fight was the right approach.
“If somebody said that they’re openly gay, what’s the big deal?” Smith said. “Well, 13 years ago, it was a big deal. And the reason why it doesn’t feel as big now at times is because of people like him.”
“If another guy did it, it would still be a big deal,” Barkley countered, as he reflected on Collins' legacy.
“He was just a gentleman, yes, and a guy firm in his beliefs,” said Johnson. “A guy who really, through his words and through his actions, has told us all, ‘You don’t have to live in the shadows.’”
And yet, here we are.
