whoa. long thread. did I miss something. did Royce speak about why he missed media day and isn't at camp? If he hasn't spoken, yet, then maybe he is innocently helping 00RocketsGirl fix her parent's laundry room. Has anyone thought of that? She did meet him in Vegas, and she is an Intern for the Rockets right now.
Can't believe all the posts on here, blasting the Rockets and White already. Thanks for everyone trying to explain what his disorder means. I think these will help people understand a bit more: I really hope it's not damage control by Morey and they really will support him and really didn't know it was the disorder that caused his absence. Morey and McHale's initial reaction wasn't exactly understanding of the situation.
I'm not at training camp, but the quotes from McHale & Morey sound like they were completely caught off guard. This is not an excused absence. Royce doesn't show up and then uses his anxiety as an excuse. OK, maybe he had a real setback or maybe he's just stalling for time. Either way, he's now proven to be both unreliable and erratic. He should be put on IR, immediately, regardless of his guilt or innocence.
I was pulling for Royce more than the others. I know some one who had anxiety almost ruin their life. Good luck Royce. Get well and get back.
I'm going to reserve judgement, but for a rookie to miss out on the 1st day of training camp is like being a police officer, but scared to go on patrol on the 1st day on the job. I just hope this won't linger too long and will be dealt in-house.
Looks like I'm jumping on board the "Fire McHale" wagon sooner than I thought. There are legal reasons they can't disclose, and there are legal reasons why they have to not worse his situation. More than that, there are ethical reasons why they have to handle this properly. There is also the investment they've put into this guy which they are pissing away if they thought that Royce White's career would not include excused/unexcused absences. There is nothing more stupid than: Dude has anxiety issue on biggest day of his life > pressure him and hold him accountable for missing media day. Poor guy. If you know anyone with anxiety issues, you will have seen how debilitating and unexpected the consequences can be if it's not handled well. As far as Royce is considered, it's clear we have to consider his situation more carefully and put some mechanisms in place so that he these issues are dealt with in a way that everyone's comfortable. This is usually a learning process for all involved. As far as McHale is concerned, this is strike one in my books. "He should be here" is a dumb thing to say especially if a medical proffessional has said otherwise.
While this is not ideal behavior, it is not that big a deal. It's not like he missed a game to attend the Super Bowl, or faked an injury to create contract renegotiation. He didn't get arrested for discharging a firearm in a best buy parking lot. No suspension for a failed drug test. Hell, he didn't even throw anyone through a window. Lighten up.
We don't know what went on and if White notified the Rockets (too) late which it looked like he did. Also we don't know how he said it, he could've said it with that smile of his or pissed off. Still doesn't change the fact it's not a smart thing to say when you think of the condition White has and it probably had to do something with that. That's why I said I hope they are really okay with it because McHale seems like an old school no excuses kind of guy. That makes the whole 'McHale really wants you' part of that pre-draft video highly unlikely.
It's not a good thing, but training camp is not THAT important compared to draft day, big games... From all I've heard about White, he seems to be a good guy and there should be legit reasons behind it. Benefit of doubt...at least for now.
You forgot he didn't leave the team because a lack of PT behind a future HOF'er and he didn't get the play-by-play guy's daughter pregnant.
If only he could sublimate his emotions into on-court performance, like Bobby Bouchet did for the Mud Dogs.
Maybe Royce needs a good, qualified anxiety nurse to follow him around for his rookie season, you guys remember Yao's translator.
