Author Topic: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?  (Read 16653 times)

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Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #15 on: October 04, 2012, 10:38:39 AM »

Offline Eja117

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Earlier Wednesday, White released a statement that detailed his refusal to join the team until a plan to address his "long-term health" was in place.

"There are often negative consequences to mental illness when not given the proper support," said White, according to a statement released through his publicist, California-based China Myers. "Often, those consequences are more severe for the surrounding people than the sufferer him/herself. I am not willing to allow those consequences to befall on myself or others close to me.

"It causes me anxiety to know that serious consequences could happen if I do not express what I deal with, or if I am not truthful enough to ask for what I need to be healthy. For me, hiding is no longer a healthy option in treating my anxiety or OCD, so I have asked for some help from the organization to ensure long-term health for myself.

"It has been determined that without a specific plan in place, the current workplace is not healthy for me. I feel that it is essential to formulate the right plan for a better chance of execution, despite other timelines or agendas. The most important agenda to me is a plan that is healthy. Therefore, a plan has been requested that will support a healthy work environment. In addition to this, it has been requested that the standard requirements for players in regards to this plan be voided because it is not a standard situation.

"It is regrettable that I cannot be currently present, but long-term health obviously should be the most important thing. I will continue to champion the cause for mental illness being met with understanding; if not, the ramifications are dangerous.

"Mental illness is a very individual-based disorder -- very unique for each person. So for those who come forward and ask for help, a very unique support plan should be the solution, given the nature of mental illness.



Wow. I can't believe he said all that. He clearly plans on missing practices too.  I mean yeah he'll be frustrated by the Rockets not giving him what he wants, but the Rockets are going to be frustrated with him missing games, training camp, and practices. He says he wants to be healthy but his new work environment is unhealthy for him.  The ADA requires reasonable work accommodations but it's not reasonable to expect the accommodation to be to show up as late as you need as often as you need or not at all.

Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #16 on: October 04, 2012, 10:54:33 AM »

Offline Chris

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Sounds to me like White has an employment lawyer (and perhaps special interest groups) working for him, setting the stage for a lawsuit if he doesn't get what he wants. 

I can't help but wonder whether he made these requests known to Houston before they drafted him...and I really doubt they were things that had not been discussed within his inner circle well before the draft. 

His agent did a heck of a snowjob.

Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #17 on: October 04, 2012, 11:02:56 AM »

Offline Eja117

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Sounds to me like White has an employment lawyer (and perhaps special interest groups) working for him, setting the stage for a lawsuit if he doesn't get what he wants. 

I can't help but wonder whether he made these requests known to Houston before they drafted him...and I really doubt they were things that had not been discussed within his inner circle well before the draft. 

His agent did a heck of a snowjob.
I wonder who lied to who or if it's just a miscommunication. If he was clear with them that he has severe issues that would need a lot of support and they were like "yeah yeah yeah" and drafted him anyway and didn't really have any plan at all then I hope he wins his case.

But if he acted like he would just need to take the bus every once in a while and now he's pulling this I hope he loses.

I mean it sounds to me like he's planning on missing shoot arounds and all sorts of stuff. Can you imagine him arriving in the 2nd quarter like "I'm here!"  Then he doesn't get played and he says it's discrimination.

All I can say is I'm glad the Celts don't have to deal with this. They're in Turkey. Thank God the Rockets didn't start the season in China or Tokyo or something.

I am very very curious to hear what Royce says he'll do if he has a game in LA and has to be in Charlotte the next day.  What's the plan Royce? Is that an unhealthy situation for you? So what's the plan?

Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #18 on: October 04, 2012, 11:29:22 AM »

Offline CelticHooligan3

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I wonder if the rumored "promise" to Royce White was just a Danny Ainge smoke screen. Maybe he was hoping to get someone else to take a flyer on him before we picked. Because Boston was the team leading up to the draft with arguably the most interest in him. If so, another great move by Ainge.

I certainly was fooled. I didn't see White missing any of training camp. I thought this was all a none issue and greatly exagerated by the media for a good story. Guess i was pretty wrong there.

Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #19 on: October 04, 2012, 12:18:07 PM »

Offline Chris

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I wonder if the rumored "promise" to Royce White was just a Danny Ainge smoke screen. Maybe he was hoping to get someone else to take a flyer on him before we picked. Because Boston was the team leading up to the draft with arguably the most interest in him. If so, another great move by Ainge.

I certainly was fooled. I didn't see White missing any of training camp. I thought this was all a none issue and greatly exagerated by the media for a good story. Guess i was pretty wrong there.

I am still convinced there was no promise, and it was a tactic by the agent.  And a genius one. 

What I think happened is White's anxiety was acting up from traveling to all the workouts...so, he shut it down, and the agent leaked that he had a promise, so teams would both think they need to pick him higher, and not worry so much that it was his anxiety.  He could have even taken it far enough to get someone like Danny in on it as a favor, to help teams think that it was the C's.


Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #20 on: October 04, 2012, 12:27:12 PM »

Offline CelticHooligan3

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I wonder if the rumored "promise" to Royce White was just a Danny Ainge smoke screen. Maybe he was hoping to get someone else to take a flyer on him before we picked. Because Boston was the team leading up to the draft with arguably the most interest in him. If so, another great move by Ainge.

I certainly was fooled. I didn't see White missing any of training camp. I thought this was all a none issue and greatly exagerated by the media for a good story. Guess i was pretty wrong there.

I am still convinced there was no promise, and it was a tactic by the agent.  And a genius one. 

What I think happened is White's anxiety was acting up from traveling to all the workouts...so, he shut it down, and the agent leaked that he had a promise, so teams would both think they need to pick him higher, and not worry so much that it was his anxiety.  He could have even taken it far enough to get someone like Danny in on it as a favor, to help teams think that it was the C's.




Sounds plausable to me Chris. I was on the rockets site.. Definatley a mix of emotions over there about it. I feel for the kid and the fans, but to me it looks like Morey took a huge swing and missed.

Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #21 on: October 04, 2012, 12:39:14 PM »

Offline saltlover

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It'll be interesting to see what "reasonable accommodations" can be interpreted as.  Is it reasonable to only play 50 games (home games plus bus trips to Dallas, San Antonio, OKC, and New Orleans?)  Plenty of NBA players only play 50 games a year due to injuries, and don't travel with the team while injured.  Is having an anxiety disorder that flares up on airplane trips that different from having a chronic back issue that flares up on airplane trips?  Both can be treated with medicine and therapy, but some days can be worse than others.

Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #22 on: October 04, 2012, 12:39:37 PM »

Offline indeedproceed

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I wonder if the rumored "promise" to Royce White was just a Danny Ainge smoke screen. Maybe he was hoping to get someone else to take a flyer on him before we picked. Because Boston was the team leading up to the draft with arguably the most interest in him. If so, another great move by Ainge.

I certainly was fooled. I didn't see White missing any of training camp. I thought this was all a none issue and greatly exagerated by the media for a good story. Guess i was pretty wrong there.

I am still convinced there was no promise, and it was a tactic by the agent.  And a genius one. 

What I think happened is White's anxiety was acting up from traveling to all the workouts...so, he shut it down, and the agent leaked that he had a promise, so teams would both think they need to pick him higher, and not worry so much that it was his anxiety.  He could have even taken it far enough to get someone like Danny in on it as a favor, to help teams think that it was the C's.




Sounds plausable to me Chris. I was on the rockets site.. Definatley a mix of emotions over there about it. I feel for the kid and the fans, but to me it looks like Morey took a huge swing and missed.

If they could close the book now and that'd be the end of it, yeah. But I think that writing off White now..its just such a terrible awful idea.

Change aggravates any psychological condition. When he went to Minnesota, do you think he was less affected? Someone (Iowa) finally took the right approach with him, and look how it paid off. It is a journey by steps with him, the Rockets need to pretty much hold his hand, and treat him with kid gloves, get him in a routine, feeling safe, feeling secure. He's gonna have setbacks, Houston needs to ensure that he can get through them.

But Royce White's talent and ceiling are far, far above anyone taken after him, excepting maybe PJ3, but even then, PJ3's injury concerns are pretty significant.


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Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #23 on: October 04, 2012, 01:08:58 PM »

Offline Eja117

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It'll be interesting to see what "reasonable accommodations" can be interpreted as.  Is it reasonable to only play 50 games (home games plus bus trips to Dallas, San Antonio, OKC, and New Orleans?)  Plenty of NBA players only play 50 games a year due to injuries, and don't travel with the team while injured.  Is having an anxiety disorder that flares up on airplane trips that different from having a chronic back issue that flares up on airplane trips?  Both can be treated with medicine and therapy, but some days can be worse than others.
You could definitely say that is a fair comparison and in a lot of ways it is. You could also compare it to a guy who has gotten a lot of concussions and wants his new team to know that since he has a lot of head problems he'll need a lot of accommodations like skipping practice and team meetings to give his head time to rest.

Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #24 on: October 04, 2012, 01:11:40 PM »

Offline saltlover

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I wonder if the rumored "promise" to Royce White was just a Danny Ainge smoke screen. Maybe he was hoping to get someone else to take a flyer on him before we picked. Because Boston was the team leading up to the draft with arguably the most interest in him. If so, another great move by Ainge.

I certainly was fooled. I didn't see White missing any of training camp. I thought this was all a none issue and greatly exagerated by the media for a good story. Guess i was pretty wrong there.

I am still convinced there was no promise, and it was a tactic by the agent.  And a genius one. 

What I think happened is White's anxiety was acting up from traveling to all the workouts...so, he shut it down, and the agent leaked that he had a promise, so teams would both think they need to pick him higher, and not worry so much that it was his anxiety.  He could have even taken it far enough to get someone like Danny in on it as a favor, to help teams think that it was the C's.




Sounds plausable to me Chris. I was on the rockets site.. Definatley a mix of emotions over there about it. I feel for the kid and the fans, but to me it looks like Morey took a huge swing and missed.

If they could close the book now and that'd be the end of it, yeah. But I think that writing off White now..its just such a terrible awful idea.

Change aggravates any psychological condition. When he went to Minnesota, do you think he was less affected? Someone (Iowa) finally took the right approach with him, and look how it paid off. It is a journey by steps with him, the Rockets need to pretty much hold his hand, and treat him with kid gloves, get him in a routine, feeling safe, feeling secure. He's gonna have setbacks, Houston needs to ensure that he can get through them.

But Royce White's talent and ceiling are far, far above anyone taken after him, excepting maybe PJ3, but even then, PJ3's injury concerns are pretty significant.

I agree.  His talent and ceiling are above a few of the players taken before him as well.

A lot of people on this board are glad that the Celtics didn't get him.  For the most part I share that sentiment, because I am very high on Sullinger, and think that Fab Melo was worth the risk given positional need. 

But let's compare Sullinger and White: Sullinger has the potential to be a solid, if not spectacular, PF/C.  Royce White has the potential to be a game-changing 3/4.  Sullinger has a chronic injury issue, that you hope with treatment you can limit such that he doesn't miss much time.  However, if/when his injury issue flares up, you will have little advance warning.  White has a chronic mental illness that you hope you can limit with treatment.  Howeever, if/when his illness flares up, you will be somewhat prepared, because it will occur on road games.  White could reasonably be expected to be available for home games, as well as games at NY, Brooklyn, Philly, and perhaps Washington.  If the schedule gods are nice, maybe there are a few games in a row at Cleveland/Detroit/Indy/Chicago/Milwaukee that he can get to.  You can hope that you find the right treatment, and that he can travel with the team a few times.  If you hit the jackpot, you find a treatment that allows him to make most or all of the trips.  With Sullinger, you similarly hope you can find the right treatment such that he doesn't miss any extended time, and if you're successful, you've again hit the jackpot.  Now maybe you feel more comfortable with your ability to manage a back issue than an anxiety issue, and I would find that reasonable, if not debatable.  But I think this "I'm glad the Celtics didn't get him" might be misplaced.  I'd rather have a game-changer for half the year than a guy who can't crack the rotation for all of the year.  (Note: I already said I prefer Sully/Melo to White.  But if White were available and one of those two were off the board, I don't think the C's would have been crazy to take White.)

Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #25 on: October 04, 2012, 01:15:23 PM »

Online Roy H.

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Earlier Wednesday, White released a statement that detailed his refusal to join the team until a plan to address his "long-term health" was in place.

"There are often negative consequences to mental illness when not given the proper support," said White, according to a statement released through his publicist, California-based China Myers. "Often, those consequences are more severe for the surrounding people than the sufferer him/herself. I am not willing to allow those consequences to befall on myself or others close to me.

"It causes me anxiety to know that serious consequences could happen if I do not express what I deal with, or if I am not truthful enough to ask for what I need to be healthy. For me, hiding is no longer a healthy option in treating my anxiety or OCD, so I have asked for some help from the organization to ensure long-term health for myself.

"It has been determined that without a specific plan in place, the current workplace is not healthy for me. I feel that it is essential to formulate the right plan for a better chance of execution, despite other timelines or agendas. The most important agenda to me is a plan that is healthy. Therefore, a plan has been requested that will support a healthy work environment. In addition to this, it has been requested that the standard requirements for players in regards to this plan be voided because it is not a standard situation.

"It is regrettable that I cannot be currently present, but long-term health obviously should be the most important thing. I will continue to champion the cause for mental illness being met with understanding; if not, the ramifications are dangerous.

"Mental illness is a very individual-based disorder -- very unique for each person. So for those who come forward and ask for help, a very unique support plan should be the solution, given the nature of mental illness.



Wow. I can't believe he said all that. He clearly plans on missing practices too.  I mean yeah he'll be frustrated by the Rockets not giving him what he wants, but the Rockets are going to be frustrated with him missing games, training camp, and practices. He says he wants to be healthy but his new work environment is unhealthy for him.  The ADA requires reasonable work accommodations but it's not reasonable to expect the accommodation to be to show up as late as you need as often as you need or not at all.

Ha.  Sounds like somebody is planning a lawsuit.

What a joke.  I'm glad he's not wearing green.


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Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #26 on: October 04, 2012, 01:18:02 PM »

Online Roy H.

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It'll be interesting to see what "reasonable accommodations" can be interpreted as.  Is it reasonable to only play 50 games (home games plus bus trips to Dallas, San Antonio, OKC, and New Orleans?)  Plenty of NBA players only play 50 games a year due to injuries, and don't travel with the team while injured.  Is having an anxiety disorder that flares up on airplane trips that different from having a chronic back issue that flares up on airplane trips?  Both can be treated with medicine and therapy, but some days can be worse than others.
You could definitely say that is a fair comparison and in a lot of ways it is. You could also compare it to a guy who has gotten a lot of concussions and wants his new team to know that since he has a lot of head problems he'll need a lot of accommodations like skipping practice and team meetings to give his head time to rest.

One note on reasonable accomodations:  the employee still must be able to perform the core functions of their job.  I would think that it would be entirely *unreasonable* to allow White to miss games or practices, or to take alternative means of transportation that cause him to miss games.


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Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #27 on: October 04, 2012, 01:20:57 PM »

Offline AshyLarry

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I feel bad for the dude. If something as simple as going on a plane affects him that much, so much where it can ruin a career at something he's amazing at, and p--- off his employers, and make them probably regret drafting him, then I wouldn't want to be that dude.

He's probably trying his best. He's not a joke, and he's not a Edited.  Profanity and masked profanity are against forum rules and may result in discipline. or anything like that. He has a real disorder, and at this point, it's possibly ruining his life.

The scrutiny and speculation, and how it seems so much is on his shoulders cannot help his anxiety...
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Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #28 on: October 04, 2012, 01:25:40 PM »

Online Roy H.

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I feel bad for the dude. If something as simple as going on a plane affects him that much, so much where it can ruin a career at something he's amazing at, and p--- off his employers, and make them probably regret drafting him, then I wouldn't want to be that dude.

He's probably trying his best. He's not a joke, and he's not a **** or anything like that. He has a real disorder, and at this point, it's possibly ruining his life.

The scrutiny and speculation, and how it seems so much is on his shoulders cannot help his anxiety...

The part that I find a joke is that he thinks the entire organization should bend over backward for him, while he can't even be bothered to attend camp.

If he can't make professional commitments, he shouldn't be a professional.  I'm sympathetic to his mental condition.  I'm also sympathetic to people who have a fear of heights.  That doesn't mean I'd support those people being a steel worker on a skyscraper construction job.

If the kid had gone into the situation with the Rockets trying his best, while asking for some accommodations, I'd feel better about him.  To avoid camp, and to start making demands while using language drawn up by his agent / lawyer tells me that the kid isn't ready for the NBA. 


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Re: Royce White MIA to Rockets Camp?
« Reply #29 on: October 04, 2012, 01:28:27 PM »

Offline saltlover

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It'll be interesting to see what "reasonable accommodations" can be interpreted as.  Is it reasonable to only play 50 games (home games plus bus trips to Dallas, San Antonio, OKC, and New Orleans?)  Plenty of NBA players only play 50 games a year due to injuries, and don't travel with the team while injured.  Is having an anxiety disorder that flares up on airplane trips that different from having a chronic back issue that flares up on airplane trips?  Both can be treated with medicine and therapy, but some days can be worse than others.
You could definitely say that is a fair comparison and in a lot of ways it is. You could also compare it to a guy who has gotten a lot of concussions and wants his new team to know that since he has a lot of head problems he'll need a lot of accommodations like skipping practice and team meetings to give his head time to rest.

One note on reasonable accomodations:  the employee still must be able to perform the core functions of their job.  I would think that it would be entirely *unreasonable* to allow White to miss games or practices, or to take alternative means of transportation that cause him to miss games.

I just don't think it will be that easy, Roy.  The Rockets do not force injured players to play.  They do not force injured players to practice, or to travel with the team.  If similar accommodations are being given to other players for different maladies, would allowing White to do the same be unreasonable?  I'm sure his lawyer has a list of players who signed contracts while having either temporary or chronic injuries.  Panic disorder and OCD are both covered under the ADA, so the Rockets can't simply ignore this, especially since they've signed a contract.