Ex-NBA player Collins: ‘Bigots should never hold office in politics’

Jason Collins watches an NBA game between the Brooklyn Nets and the Milwaukee Bucks November 19, 2014 at the Barclay Center in New York. Collins, the first openly gay man in one of the four major US professional team sports, announced his retirement from the NBA today. AFP PHOTO/Don Emmert / AFP / DON EMMERT

Jason Collins, the first openly gay player during his last days in the NBA, took to Twitter to air his side on the controversy surrounding Manny Pacquiao after the boxer said homosexuals are worse than animals.

“Manny Pacquiao I lost all respect for you,” Collins posted. “Bigoted people like you (and yes you are one) should never hold an office in politics.”

Collins admitted he was gay back in 2013, a few months before turning into an unrestricted free agent. He spent most of his career with New Jersey Nets before journeying around the NBA then retiring in 2014.

Pacquiao said in a controversial interview that gay people copulating with each other is a behavior worse than animals, which can distinguish the other sex.

Collins played 13 seasons with the NBA and was a major figure during the #LoveWins saga when the United States Supreme Court legalized gay marriage.