If social media is to be believed, it’s curtains for the Phoenix Suns in their NBA finals series matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks. Is Chris Paul injured? No more than he seems to be in every playoff series he’s ever played. Did Giannis Antekounpo ingest the superhuman serum? Possibly, given the way he’s played this series. But he’s been playing at THAT level this entire series. Then what has changed? The officiating crew list for game 6 was announced, and Scott Foster is on it. 

So who is Scott Foster and why is he important to this matchup? Scott Foster is not the second coming of Darth Vader, here to force choke the Phoenix Suns’ title aspirations. He’s an NBA official who has officiated 1477 NBA regular season games over 25 seasons. He’s also been part of the referee crew in 187 playoff games, including 19 NBA finals games. Plenty of officiating experience. And he’s part of an officiating team, not the sole referee. But only one statistic matters to Chris Paul and Phoenix Suns fans: 0-12. That is the record Paul has against opposing teams when he is on the floor and Scott Foster is officiating. 

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Have Paul and Scott had dust-ups? Quite a few, including a technical foul Scott assessed on Paul for a rare delay of game last September, when Paul was playing for the Oklahoma City franchise. Paul certainly feels he has an uphill task in games officiated by Foster. After Game 3 in the series against the Lakers, following another loss in a game officiated by Foster, he said frustratedly –  “If I was a betting man, 11 games in a row. Eleven games in a row.” He’s since lost another game officiated by Foster this postseason. The Phoenix Suns certainly feel that the officiating in this series has been lop-sided, citing everything from the free throw disparity in some games to non-calls on fouls by the Bucks. 

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While officiating makes a big difference in close games it’s more likely that the problems for the Suns lie elsewhere. Their lineup lacks size compared to the gigantic Bucks. Deandre Ayton is the closest the Suns have to a big man, and he has a critical role rebounding on the offensive glass. Which means it makes it hard for him to quickly get back on defence, especially in transition. This has given the Bucks an almost insurmountable advantage in high percentage shots close to the rim. This has also resulted in a huge advantage for the Bucks in overall rebounds, resulting in even more scoring opportunities. In addition, the Suns seem to have no answers for the Giannis and Khris Middleton pick and roll. Giannis is also playing like he’s finally discovered he’s the best player in the NBA. This has forced the Suns into few options, all of which involve shooting at an extraordinary rate from the mid range and 3 point line. Chris Paul and Devin Booker have it in them to shoot with efficiency, but what is needed likely surpasses even their abilities. 

So grab your popcorn and watch what is certain to be an entertaining game 6. And if the overmatched Suns do go on to lose game 6 and the championship, their fans have an easy scapegoat. His name is Scott Foster.