By now, NBA referee Scott Foster has a built-in (and conspiratorial) reputation for swinging big playoff games. At the very least, even if some of his calls aren’t intentional, he’s well-known to fans for mostly the wrong reasons as an official.
One moment stands out in particular from Foster’s latest work — Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals on Saturday night. Even while Jamal Murray’s Denver Nuggets eventually prevailed to take a 3-0 series lead, there was an instance with Los Angeles Lakers guard Dennis Schröder that made it seem like Foster was seemingly invested in an L.A. victory.
Late in the first half, Schröder dribbled the ball up the court right next to Foster, who was running down the sideline. Sorry, scratch that, Schröder noticeably carried the ball while having a conversation (!) with Foster.
As I’m sure you can guess, Foster didn’t make any call on the play with Schröder. And I’m not sure why:
From Lakers-Nuggets Game 3 last night:
Dennis Schroder casually carrying the ball while talking with Scott Foster. No call was made 👀pic.twitter.com/zTqhfaWxBY
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) May 21, 2023
Honestly, I know officials in sports miss calls all the time, and it can be impossible to nail down perfectly. It’s part of the deal with the human element. But, for the life of me, I can’t explain why Foster didn’t call Schröder for a carry, travel, whatever. He was literally looking right at him and talking to him.
I guess Foster just decided the fundamental rules of basketball were OK to break at that specific moment, and it boggles the mind. At least this one missed call didn’t end up costing the Nuggets dearly.