It appears at least one thing doesn't cause Royce any anxiety, attention. Dear D. Morey, did you have a shrink speak with Royce before you drafted him?
Royce alread pre-emptively killed the possibility of a new shrink when he said he's been seeing the same one for years and built trust with her.
From the chronicle article after the draft http://www.chron.com/default/article/Rockets-introduced-trio-of-draftees-3674069.php The 6-8, 260-pound White was one of the most intriguing players taken in the first round. He was the only player in the country to lead his team in scoring (13.4 points per game), rebounding (9.3 assists per game), assists (five per game), steals (1.2 per game) and blocks (0.9 per game) last season, an indicator of his versatility. He also comes with uncertainty. White originally enrolled at Minnesota and before he played a game, he was arrested for shoplifting two shirts valued at $100 and assaulting a security guard at Mall of America. He pleaded guilty and was suspended. A month later, police questioned him about the theft of a laptop, prompting him to withdraw from school. White has overcome an anxiety disorder and has a fear of flying. Morey said the Rockets viewed White is a "top-5" talent in the draft and the team got comfortable with him after an extensive background check. McHale was reassured by Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg, who played for Minnesota from 2003-05, when McHale worked in the Timberwolves' front office and later became the head coach. "It's been up and down," White said of his personal journey to the NBA. "It kind of started kind of down. That seemed to be a good spot for me, because I've been on the rise, or the climb ever since, and I'm still climbing, with (Thursday) being a big jump for me." White caught a 6 a.m. flight to Houston for the introductory news conference. He says his fear of flying has been overblown, though he acknowledged that it's still an issue. "Here's how it goes," White explained. "I'm scared (going) to the airport, I'm scared going up, I'm uncomfortable in the air and I feel like a million bucks when we hit the runway." So what changed between summer league and now ?
This is GOOD for our organization. Morey can use this situation to show the league he does see players as people and not assets.
I am actually glad you posted this, makes it clear you are a poster who should be on my ignore list. I see now its not about the anxiety disorder, you just don't like the guy and have made up your mind before he has even played a single game in the NBA which is IMHO just plain stupid. Pretty hilarious, when followed by your sig. Well reading the articles, it seems like how he handles it is PART of the disease. And Yao's slow clumniness was stopping him from being an all time great, not preventing him from performing very basic everyday functions that anyone else can do. There is a huge difference there. I would offer this similar, yet more extreme example: "Look at that chump handicap kid who can't run because he has no legs" vs. "Look at that chump Chuck Hayes who whose midget-ness kept him from being an all time great defender" One of those statements is probably okay to make, the other is very innapropriate and insensitive.
i didn't like his game or prospects as an nba player before we drafted him. i didn't like his showing at SL. and i definitely don't like the crap he's pulled in the past week. i'm indifferent to his anxiety disorder and don't really think the past week relates to that as much as to his overall lack of character. put me on your ignore list - i'm indifferent to that, too.
I am not subscribed to it at all, I saw it when it was posted on here. And I'm allowed to have an opinion on what I see, just like anyone else.
If that is true, which I have serious doubt, then it just proves that the baggage is to big for him to be an effective professional in anything. And maybe his doctor is a chump because he/she allows him to do all those things in public, which clearly doesn't help his illness. In short, what he is doing is embarrassing. Someone has to take responsibility. If he can't because of his mental handicap, then someone needs to do that for him.
The dude can play. He dropped to #16 because of his openness. High Risk / High Reward. Us fans need to back him. We are only going to make it worse if we yell about him here and on talk radio...and his twitter feed...etc. chill people .... let the dude play then decide.
I don't think it proves anything, other than the transition will be harder than most. Why are you so quick to make a definitive and final decision based on such little information? And what possible harm comes from trying to make it work? Did it ever occur to you that he is a 21 year old kid and maybe he doesn't have an entourage of PR men and doctors on call? When you were 21 did you have a doctor who monitored your public relations? Its not embarrassing, it is two very unique situations (anxiety disorder and a transition into a highly intensive high profile NBA lifestyle) coming together, and there is no model for him to use for how to handle it appropriately. Give the kid a freaking break. There is likely just as much a chance that this is handled amicalbly and it never becomes a problem again, as it causes him to flame out and bust. And I agree, he needs help to make this all work, and thats what he is asking for.
You can decide how expert this sounds to you. Mental disorders of this type can be described as having triggers. That is, certain thoughts, experiences and situations bring the affliction to life. What is not clear is how narrow or widespread his trigger set is. Is it just flying on planes? Or is it more widespread than this? Mishandling situations is easily within the scope of any 21 year old. Any person at any age for that matter. It is also easy for such persons to blame their disorder on occurrences not associated with it in order to gain sympathy and deflect criticism. Without knowing the trigger set, its uncertain if, or to what degree he is doing this. Its also uncertain to what degree he is acting on his own and when he following someone elses lead. Its doubtful his doctor has any influence on his day to day activities since appointments and treatment tend to follow a regular pattern at regular time intervals. Whether his family, his agent or his friends are part of the equation is unknown. Its also possible that he himself does not know the answers to all of these questions. Its easy to misjudge when your not entirely clear when you are and when you are not acting in concert with your affliction. Sometimes, you have gone on for some time in a given endeavor before you realize the basis or the fundamental motivation or influence behind it.
I don't know the kid and for all I know he is a great guy who's trying his best with a lot of struggles. But the more he goes on twitter and talks down to people who criticize him the more he seems (at least to me) as if he's doing what is bolded above.
Someone needs to sit this kid down and let him know how this whole situation looks. He wants to be a spokesperson for people with anxiety? Great. Do your job well first. As of right now, he's the poster boy for NOT using a first-round draft pick on someone with mental issues.
Speaking of poster boy. I wonder if while hes defending down low, all of a sudden Blake Griffin comes flying over him.. will he run to the bus? Or send Blake a twitter "you have no sympathy for the mentally ill!"?
http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/star-rockets-rookie-faces-fear-flying-17414276#.UHC5kJg0WSo ^^There's another in-depth Royce article. I wasn't sure if it deserved its own thread since there's so many Royce threads open right now, but there's a lot of stuff in there. One piece of bad news is he says he doesn't know if he's going to miss games randomly throughout the season.
