Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash
says he's OK with Rick Welts' coming out gay.
Welts, the CEO and president of the
Phoenix Suns, recently
told The New York Times that he's gay.
“I don't think the players on our
team care,” Nash
told The New York Times on Monday. “Not a lot of guys
on the team have a lot of contact with Rick, including myself.
Obviously, I have a ton of respect for him and what he does for the
organization. I think he's great at what he does.”
The 37-year-old Nash also recently
appeared in a video ad for the Human Rights Campaign's (HRC) New
Yorkers for Marriage Equality campaign.
“A growing number of professional
athletes are speaking out in support of gay and lesbian couples
getting married,” Nash
said in the ad. “I'm proud to be one of them.”
Nash also told the paper that the NBA
is ready for an openly gay player.
“If a player in the locker room came
out, it would come and go quickly, too. I really don’t think it’s
a big issue anymore. I think it would be surprisingly accepted, and a
shorter shelf life than maybe we would imagine. I think the time has
come when it should happen soon. I think it will be something that
won’t take on this life of its own. It won’t be the O. J. trial.”
Nash's
comments come after the NBA fined two players for hurling anti-gay
slurs.