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Former Atlanta Hawks center and 12-year NBA veteran Jason Collins has come out and revealed he is gay.

The 34-year old journeyman wrote an article for Sports Illustrated (that hits newsstands May 6) and came out on his terms in his own words.

I’m a 34-year-old NBA center. I’m black. And I’m gay.

I didn’t set out to be the first openly gay athlete playing in a major American team sport. But since I am, I’m happy to start the conversation. I wish I wasn’t the kid in the classroom raising his hand and saying, “I’m different.” If I had my way, someone else would have already done this. Nobody has, which is why I’m raising my hand….

Now I’m a free agent, literally and figuratively. I’ve reached that enviable state in life in which I can do pretty much what I want. And what I want is to continue to play basketball. I still love the game, and I still have something to offer. My coaches and teammates recognize that. At the same time, I want to be genuine and authentic and truthful.

Collins played with the Hawks for three seasons from 2009-12.

Jason says he didn’t come out to his twin brother, Jarron, until last summer.

He is the first major active American male pro athlete to announce he is gay.

“I’m glad I can stop hiding and refocus on my 13th NBA season.”

Former Hawks center Jason Collins has signed a one-year deal with rival Boston Celtics

Jason Collins has signed a one-year deal with the Boston Celtics, according to Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com.

Forsberg reported “the Celtics will pay [Collins] $854,389, while the league will pick up the rest of his $1.35 million salary as a veteran with 10-plus years of experience.

Boston recently lost 6’11′ backup center Greg Stiemsma after the restricted free-agent signed an offer sheet with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Celtics wanted to keep Stiemsma, but were unable to match Minnesota’s offer sheet due to “salary-cap constraints,” Frosberg stated.

The C’s quickly found a solution to replace Stiemsma in the 11-year veteran Collins, who played for the Atlanta Hawks last season. While Collins isn’t the shot-blocker or rebounder that Steimsma was, the 33-year old Collins has better size (7-feet, 255lbs) and will be a lot more stout defending the pick-and-roll and low-post.

A former Stanford University standout, Collins only appeared in 30 games last season for Atlanta, scoring a modest 39 points the entire year. Collins has career averages of 3.8 points and 3.9 rebounds per game.

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It only took 16 days on the job for new President of Basketball Operations/GM, Danny Ferry to give the Atlanta Hawks a total roster overhaul. On a team that already looks dramatically different from just a month ago, two core pieces remain: Josh Smith and Al Horford.

Hawks fans knew this summer would be a wild ride for the organization, with 67 percent of last years team gone, a new head honcho at the helm, and a new outlook of the future, how could it not be?

Lets take a look at the Hawks’ player movement to date:

Departures:

Jason Collins, Erick Dampier, Willie Green, Kirk Hinrich, Joe Johnson, Tracy McGrady, Jannero Pargo, Vladimir Radmanovic, Jerry Stackhouse, Marvin Williams

Arrivals:

Devin Harris, John Jenkins, Anthony Morrow, Johan Petro, Mike Scott, DeShawn Stevenson, Jordan Williams, Lou Williams

*** Jordan Farmar came to Atlanta via Joe Johnson/Brooklyn trade but was bought out of his contract