ESPN's Chris Broussard under fire for Jason Collins coverage, calling homosexuality a sin

NBA free agent Jason Collins became the first openly gay player in the nation's four biggest team sports Monday, making the announcement in a cover story with Sports Illustrated. "I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay," Collins says in the story, which generated "overwhelmingly positive" support online, according to Mashable.

But a few exceptions included Miami Dolphins receiver Mike Wallace, who tweeted that he "didn't understand" homosexuality, and ESPN magazine reporter Chris Broussard, who called it a sin during the network's coverage of the Collins' coming out.

"If you're openly living in unrepentant sin, whatever it may be, not just homosexuality, adultery, fornication, premarital sex between heterosexuals, whatever it may be, I believe that's walking in open rebellion to God and to Jesus Christ," Broussard said on "Outside the Lines" Monday.

Broussard said that other NBA Christians might also disagree with homosexuality, but are afraid to say so.

"In talking to some people around the league, there's a lot Christians in the NBA and just because they disagree with that lifestyle, they don't want to be called bigoted and intolerant and things like that," he said.

Here's the full text of Broussard's comments, transcribed by NBA blogger Ben Golliver:

I'm a Christian. I don't agree with homosexuality. I think it's a sin, as I think all sex outside of marriage between a man and a woman is. [ESPN's] L.Z. [Granderson] knows that. He and I have played on basketball teams together for several years. We've gone out, had lunch together, we've had good conversations, good laughs together. He knows where I stand and I know where he stands. I don't criticize him, he doesn't criticize me, and call me a bigot, call me ignorant, call me intolerant.

In talking to some people around the league, there's a lot Christians in the NBA and just because they disagree with that lifestyle, they don't want to be called bigoted and intolerant and things like that. That's what LZ was getting at. Just like I may tolerate someone whose lifestyle I disagree with, he can tolerate my beliefs. He disagrees with my beliefs and my lifestyle but true tolerance and acceptance is being able to handle that as mature adults and not criticize each other and call each other names.

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... Personally, I don't believe that you can live an openly homosexual lifestyle or an openly premarital sex between heterosexuals, if you're openly living that type of lifestyle, then the Bible says you know them by their fruits, it says that's a sin. If you're openly living in unrepentant sin, whatever it may be, not just homosexuality, adultery, fornication, premarital sex between heterosexuals, whatever it may be, I believe that's walking in open rebellion to God and to Jesus Christ. I would not characterize that person as a Christian because I do not think the Bible would characterize them as a Christian.