Jason Collins, By Declaring He's Gay, Has Given Boys A New Male Sports Image

I don't know if Jason Collins counts as an "active player" given that even though he played in the still active 2012-2013 season, at this moment he's under contract to nobody. But Collins' announcement in Sports Illustrated -- "I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay" -- is going to have a profound impact on sports, and on what it means to be a boy in America.