By Jeff Walsh

John Amaechi is the first NBA player to ever come out of the closet. His new book, "Man in the Middle," has started a dialogue about homophobia in the NBA, which was confirmed when another former player went on an anti-gay tirade when asked about hypothetically playing with an openly gay player on their team.

Not being a huge sports fan (which is a nice way to say I really don't like any sports), the book was a surprisingly easy, entertaining read. There were some amusing gaffes as a result, though. At one point, Amaechi talks about something putting him on the DL, and I kept thinking, "Umm, you've pretty much been on the down low for the duration of this book?!" Of course, he meant disabled list. There are a few sports terms that cross that line throughout, although contextually, it's more humorous than confusing.

Amaechi is currently working with the Human Rights Campaign as part of their coming out program, and recently spoke with Oasis about his life since the book's release.

By Jeff Walsh

Let's clear things up right at the beginning. I'm not a jock. Never liked sports, never got the point and don't think I'm missing anything. I work out a few times a week at the gym Out Magazine called "ground zero for the San Francisco gay-body high society" in its most recent issue. I hate working out, and not just because I'm surrounded by hunky models who seem as though they're enjoying what I find torturous. It just never clicked with me.

But Dan Woog and sports click -- big time. He's a high school soccer coach, freelance journalist and the author of the recent Alyson book: "Jocks: True Stories of America's Gay Male Athletes."