Royce White, Anxiety, and Privacy

Houston Rockets rookie forward Royce White may never play in the NBA, and it has nothing to do with on-the-court issues.  White has an anxiety disorder, and maintains that he will not do anything to jeopardize his mental health, even if that means retiring as a professional basketball player before he even gets started. 

White and the Rockets have a unique dynamic right now. I'm hesitant to call it a skirmish, but there's certainly a disconnect between the two parties.  White feels that the Rockets have not been accommodating toward his anxiety, and the Rockets continue to fine White for every day that he does not report to D-League practice and meet with a team-appointed therapist.  While Houston has maintained that they will neither release nor trade White, it certainly would not be surprising to envision White no longer with the team.  Will he be able to play for another team, though?  It certainly seems doubtful, especially because White has been very public about his anxiety.

Despite the fact that nearly 18 percent of Americans, including myself, have some form of anxiety disorder, it is somewhat of a private disorder.  There is a definite level of shame and stigma attached to anxiety, as it is not a visible disease and because it is often associated directly to simply being scared or nervous.  For White to be so outspoken on a national level about his anxiety, then, is admirable.  However, as someone who has been through some of the same issues as White, sometimes publicly and sometimes not,  I wonder if there will come a time that he will regret speaking out. 

Whether we like it or not, professional teams are not going to have a large amount of tolerance for White because they will view him as "problem child" with "character issues."  Teams are supposed to be bigger than any one person, especially when that player is not a superstar.  White wants to ride on buses or trains instead of flying long distances, something perfectly acceptable in general society, but gives off the idea of aloofness and egotistic in the context of team sports.  At this juncture, White may feel that being public about his anxiety is the best course of action, but he may not always feel that way, and since he is such a public figure, there is no way to take back the things that he has said.  I'm not saying that White has anything to be ashamed about, but there have been times when I have wanted to address a personal issue publicly before ultimately deciding that I should not to do so because I don't want to deal with the potential repercussions.  I just hope that White's forthcoming nature does not result in his undoing.

The Worst Trade of All Time?

The Miami Marlins just traded five players, plus their dignity, to the Toronto Blue Jays for little more than salary relief.  In all, the Blue Jays receive all-star shortstop Jose Reyes, ace Josh Johnson, durable pitcher Mark Buehrle, catcher John Buck, and super-utility man Emilio Bonifacio.  The Marlins will receive shortstop Yunel Escobar, who is known primarily for his notoriously bad attitude, pitcher Henderson Alvarez, and prospects Jake Marisnick, Justin Nicolino, and Adeiny Hechavarria.

To say this is merely a salary dump is understating the absurdity of this trade.  At least when the Boston Red Sox gave up Adrian Gonzalez, they made the Los Angeles Dodgers take on the albatross that is Carl Crawford and his contract.  In this case, the Blue Jays instantly become contenders in the tough AL East without taking any bad contracts, while the Marlins entirely rebuild under owner/cheapskate Jeffrey Loria.  Reyes is signed for five more years, and he's only 29 years old.  Johnson, who when healthy is one of the best pitchers in the major leagues, is signed for one year at $13.5 million.  Buehrle is signed for three more years, and has shown no signs of slowing down at 33.  Bonifacio is only making 2.2 million dollars in 2013 and is incredibly speedy, and Buck is a catcher with power who is signed for a reasonable contract.  So Toronto gains 5 assets and 0 liabilities.

If that isn't crazy enough, what did Toronto really have to give up? Escobar is solid defensively, but he hasn't hit well in three years, and infamously got suspended for writing a gay slur on his eye-black in September.  Alvarez struck out an absurdly low 3.8 batters per nine innings, and if a pitcher can't miss any bats, he's simply not going to be effective no matter how effective his walk and ground ball rates are.  Hechavarria is only 23, but he doesn't walk, has no power, and is not a good base stealer.  Marsnick is a decent prospect, though he had a poor 2012 season after a very good 2011.  Nicolino is probably the best player in this deal, as he's 21, struck out nearly a batter per inning, and had a 2.46 ERA in 2012.  However, Nicolino has yet to play above A-ball, and he is by no means a guaranteed star.  So even if I were being generous, the Marlins receive more question marks than true assets, while giving up every valuable player they have except for Giancarlo Stanton.  After moving to a new ballpark, the Marlins look like they might actually spend to contend, but after one disastrous year, they seem content to simply help other teams do so.