On May 12, the first openly gay NBA player, Jason Collins, passed away. Jason died at the age of 47 after struggling with brain cancer (glioblastoma). The NBA player’s family revealed the news of his demise on Tuesday. Collins publicly came out with his stage 4 glioblastoma in December last year.
For those unaware, Jason Collins was married to Brunson Green. Jason and Brunson started dating sometime in 2013. After dating for more than ten years, the duo tied the knot in May last year. During the wedding, many of the duo’s guests posted pictures of the happy couple smiling and holding hands as they celebrated their marriage.
For those unaware, Brunson Green is a film producer. He is from Jackson and worked as a movie producer for about thirty years. At the start of his career, he helped produce several films like Chicken Party, Pretty Ugly People, Slappy the Clown, The Journeyman, and Fool’s Gold.
Later, Brunson teamed up with his childhood friends Tate Taylor and Kathryn Stockett to make a movie based on her 2009 book, The Help, in 2011. Green co-produced the film with Taylor, who directed it.
The following year, Brunson Green earned nominations for the BAFTA and Academy Awards. Green won a PGA Award and a Black Reel Award for The Help. Recently, Brunson produced Regretting You.
NBA released Jason Collins’ death news
The NBA released the statement on behalf of Collins’ family, which read:
“We are heartbroken to share that Jason Collins, our beloved husband, son, brother and uncle, has died after a valiant fight with glioblastoma,”
It further stated that Jason had been receiving medical care for the last eight months.
“Jason changed lives in unexpected ways and was an inspiration to all who knew him and to those who admired him from afar. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers over the past eight months and for the exceptional medical care Jason received from his doctors and nurses. Our family will miss him dearly.” the statement read.
In related news, Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke also died on May 12 at the age of 29. The San Antonio Spurs and Minnesota Timberwolves took a moment before Game 5 of their Western Conference semifinal series to remember Jason Collins and Brandon Clarke.
Edited by Shatakshi Gupta