In the last 24 hours, one of the questions we’ve been asked over and over is how the coming out of NBA player Jason Collins could affect him financially. We got the first glimpse of that when the Washington Wizards told ABC News that sales of the out center’s jerseys spiked in the last 36 hours. In fact, yesterday Collins was the most popular Wizard by 100 percent:
Team spokesman Scott Hall told ABC News that 100 percent of custom jerseys ordered from the team's online store bore Collins' name and number, 98, on the back, after Collins revealed his homosexuality in an article published on Sports Illustrated's website on Monday.
This is no surprise to us. One of the first emails I received yesterday was from a straight friend at Fox Sports who said she was going to buy a Collins jersey. Even if the Wizards don't re-sign him, that jersey is now part of history, and people want a part of it. Imagine the memorabilia that could be sold the first time he steps foot on an NBA court for a regular season game.
Still, this isn't why he'll be signed by a team; His NBA future will depend on his ability to help them win.
Read ABC News' full report.
