Royce White Close to Reporting to Camp

In efforts to rejoin the Houston Rockets in training camp, rookie forward Royce White has finalized a pact with the team to help him out with his ongoing issues of his anxiety disorder. White, who has a fear of flying, will be bused to certain NBA cities to ease the rookies issues of flying on a plane.

White will foot the bill for the travel expenses, but he feels that this is the right choice for him to get back with his teammates and back to the game of basketball.

White had this to say about the agreement:

I think that was a great step taken by the Rockets to be able to meet me on this one, and it was a great step in terms of mental illness being taken seriously in the workplace. I just think it's a very positive thing that happened all the way around.

According to reports there are more pieces of the deal that the Rockets and White have agreed on, like travel accommodations and a diet plan to help make NBA life easier for White to cope with. White has been fighting with his anxiety disorder since he was 10 years old as a youth in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The specifics of the deal between White and the Rockets are pending league approval.

White has taken full responsibility for not being with the team at the opening of camp, but wants to move on with his coaches and teammates. When asked about returning to the team he could not give an exact time frame, but felt it would not be more than a week.

The Rockets' front office has taken the steps to make sure White will be a part of the 2012 season and teammates like Chandler Parsons, Marcus Morris and Patrick Patterson have reached out to White to help the process along.

The team looks to be committed to getting White to camp and making him an asset to the franchise, but with a new look team in 2012 the Rockets need full focus at the task at hand. White's issues could be the start of season long soap opera or nothing more than the Rockets helping a talented young NBA player make his mark in Houston.