Golden State Warriors star Chris Paul and NBA official Scott Foster have been contending in a longtime feud since Paul’s tenure with the Clippers. As CP3 claimed earlier, the issues between him and Foster started when the NBA official commented on Paul’s son. Though the feud hasn’t found any resolution, Foster’s bias against Chris Paul has cost the 12x All-Star several regular and postseason games.
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One of the most recent incidents in this longtime feud occurred in the game against the Golden State Warriors and the Phoenix Suns on November 22. Just before halftime, Paul was slapped with technical fouls and then ejected after arguing with Foster during the game.
This matchup resulted in a 123-115 loss for the Warriors at the Footprint Center. After the game, CP3 admitted that a personal beef between the two led to his ejection.
In a recent episode of Gil’s Arena Show, former NBA player and 3x All-Star Gilbert Arenas gave his two cents on this issue. Arenas has noticed that the league hasn’t taken proper cognizance of Chris Paul’s continuous requests for official intervention. Though Commissioner Adam Silver did comment on this matter, Gilbert Arenas figures a dilemmatic situation for CP3.
“You don’t wanna take Scott Foster off CP’s games. How about this, CP, stop playing games Scott Foster is reffing. Now, the question becomes how long before Adam Silver tries to fine Chris Paul for missing those games?”
Indeed, Agent Zero’s introspection might make sense in this case. Instead of costing his team the games whenever Scott Foster officiates, CP3 could remain on the bench or choose to miss those games. However, the league policy also strictly reprimands players for missing games, like in the case of Ben Simmons.
With this, it becomes more pertinent for the NBA to find an amicable solution to this longstanding feud. Fans have often argued that Chris Paul’s complaints and requests for intervention have been mostly taken in vain and demand action to maintain professionalism in this sport.
Adam Silver breaks his silence on the longstanding feud
Following the recent altercation between Chris Paul and Scott Foster on November 22nd, the matter has become a heated point of contention, rifling the NBA fans. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver broke his silence on this matter, noting that both Paul and Foster are well-respected veterans in their roles in the NBA. In an appearance on Sirius XM NBA Radio, Silver said,
“Scott is one of the highest-rated NBA officials, which is why he referees our finals games. Of course, Chris’s track record speaks for itself. The way you handle that is the way we’ve tried to handle that, by talking to both of them and saying the expectation is that you’re going to be professional…Whatever the bad blood is between you two, you don’t have to be friends, but you have to go out and do your jobs. That’s my expectation.”
In a previous episode of the Gil’s Arena Show, Gilbert Arenas elaborated on the aggravated nature of the feud, reminding fans of Foster’s taunts at Chris Paul. Arenas revealed how the senior NBA official often reminded CP3 about his horrible record against him in Playoff games, almost as if to seek some vendetta.
Now that Commissioner Silver has also broken his silence on this matter, it would be interesting to see any changes in this longstanding feud. The Warriors fans would be expecting an unbiased and fair officiating of games the next time Scott Foster is assigned for a CP3 game.
