[7] He and Jarron won two California Interscholastic Federation state titles during their four-year careers with a combined record of 123–10.

[8][9] Collins was backed up by Jason Segel, who USA Today opined might have ended up being the most famous player from the team.

[13] He finished his college career ranked first in Stanford history for field goal percentage (.608) and third in blocked shots (89).

[14] As a rookie along with Richard Jefferson, Collins played a significant role in the New Jersey Nets' first-ever NBA Finals berth in 2002 against the Los Angeles Lakers.

During this Finals appearance, Collins acknowledged that he is not really 7 feet tall as he has been listed since his junior year of college.

After Game 4 in the series, then-Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy called Collins' play "the best defense on [Howard] all year".

[37] Collins' jersey rose to the top spot for sales in the NBA's online shop, and the NBA announced that proceeds from the sales, as well as proceeds from auctions of Collins' autographed game-worn jerseys, would benefit the Matthew Shepard Foundation, and the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN).

[45][46] In the cover story of the May 6, 2013 issue of Sports Illustrated, a first person story by Collins with journalist Franz Lidz,[47][48] and posted on the magazine's website on April 29, 2013, he came out as gay, becoming the first active male athlete from one of the four major North American professional team sports to publicly do so.

[28][49][50] He wrote that he wished to maintain his privacy in regard to specific details of his personal life, and that he is not in a relationship.

[52] Collins, a Christian, responded by saying "This is all about tolerance and acceptance and America is the best country in the world because we're all entitled to our opinions and beliefs but we don't have to agree.

"[53] The Guardian called it significant for LGBTQ acceptance "as professional sports had long been seen as the final frontier.

"[54] Given the interest in major league team sports in the United States, The Christian Science Monitor wrote that Collins' announcement was "likely to put wind in the sails of this trend" of acceptance of gay rights in U.S. public opinion.

[50] Former tennis player Martina Navratilova, who came out as a lesbian in 1981, called Collins a "game-changer" for team sports, which she referred to as one of the last areas where homophobia remained.

[45][57] On the day it was released, the Sports Illustrated story drew a record 3.7 million visitors to the magazine's website, SI.com.