HomeNBARenowned NBA referee Scott Foster sustained an injury during a game

Renowned NBA referee Scott Foster sustained an injury during a game

March 19, 2025

Los Angeles Clippers v Phoenix Suns - Game Two — PHOENIX, ARIZONA - APRIL 18: Referee Scott Foster #48 during the second half of Game Two of the Western Conference First Round Playoffs at Footprint Center on April 18, 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns defeated the Clippers 123-109. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

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The man known as “The Extender” may now be looking at a spell on the sidelines.

Longtime NBA referee Scott Foster was the crew chief for Monday’s game between the Miami Heat and the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. But Foster was curiously out of action for the fourth quarter as Tre Maddox and Evan Scott closed out the contest as a two-man officiating crew instead.

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On Tuesday, the NBA shared a notable update on Foster’s status. Foster had to exit the game due to a calf injury, and no word has been given on his timetable for a return (per Fred Katz of The Athletic).

The 57-year-old Foster is one of the league’s longest-tenured referees. He is in his 30th career season as an NBA official and entered the 2024-25 campaign having already reffed over 1,900 games (regular season and playoffs).

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But Foster is also perhaps the most notorious referee in the NBA right now. That is in part due to his high-profile feuds with some top NBA stars and in part due to Foster’s reputation among fans for supposedly helping to extend playoff series by giving favorable calls to the trailing team.

A calf injury is obviously a concern for someone in their late 50s, especially considering how much running referees do throughout the course of an NBA game. Foster is also one of the league’s most omnipresent refs during the playoffs, which are set to begin in less than a month. In light of the injury that he just suffered, Foster’s status for this year’s NBA postseason may now be a real question mark.