ESPN: If Big Baby says no, Nets expected to move quickly on Jason Collins

Ohm Youngmisuk and Marc Stein report that if Glen "Big Baby" Davis decides to join the Clippers and not the Nets, expect Brooklyn to move quickly --perhaps as early as Sunday-- to sign Jason Collins to a 10-day contract, making him the first openly gay player on any major US sports team.

Davis is expected to make a decision Sunday. He will become eligible to sign a deal and join a team by 5 p.m. Sunday, Youngmisuk and Stein report.  It's uncertain which way he will go, but the ESPN writers suggest it will not be money that motivates him.

Sources indicate Davis will likely make his choice based on available playing time and the situation he likes best, given that the salary he receives from his new team will simply be subtracted from the amount Orlando owes him after the buyout.

Later, Sam Amick of USA Today tweeted that the Nets are moving on to "Plan B," having been given the "impression" Davis is headed to L.A.

Nets been given impression Glen Davis will sign w/ Clippers once he clears waivers at 5 p.m. Eastern, I'm told. They're plotting Plan B now.

— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) February 23, 2014

Davis, unlike Collins, would receive a guaranteed deal. Assuming the 6'9" Davis says no, Youngmisuk and Stein write, "There is growing sentiment within the Brooklyn Nets' organization to move quickly to sign Jason Collins to a 10-day contract."  They note as well that Collins, who's a Los Angeles native, and the Nets will be both be in L.A. on Sunday.  Whether Collins would make his debut against the Lakers, if signed, was left unsaid.

The Nets, as proven Saturday night at Golden State, are in desperate need of rim protection, particularly when Kevin Garnett leaves the floor.  Collins, who specialized in just that, is familiar with a number of Nets. He played six years with Jason Kidd in New Jersey, three years with Joe Johnson in Atlanta and a year with Garnett and Pierce in Boston.  Garnett, Deron Williams and others on the team have said they'd welcome Collins.

Collins told Sports Illustrated he was gay in an exclusive interview last spring.  Since then, there has been questions as to whether Collins' inability to find work in the NBA is about his sexual preference or declining skills. Collins is 35.

Under the CBA, the Nets can offer Collins a second 10-day contract after the first expires.  The Nets return to Brooklyn on March 3.

• Nets' interest in Jason Collins rising - Marc Stein & Ohm Youngmisuk - ESPN New York