NBA referee Scott Foster was tended to by medical professionals after taking a grisly slap after tossing a jump ball during the first quarter of Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals. 

While standing under Julius Randle and Lou Dort to toss the ball, the follow-through of Dort’s right hand strikes Foster in the face, with him grimacing immediately. 

Foster had to go to the sidelines as his nose dripped blood and get it clogged up with a towel, less than two minutes after the game’s opening tip.

The slap from Dort was unintentional with Foster at the apex for a stunning strike. 

There was nowhere for Foster to run to, as he was hit only split second after releasing the ball into the air. 

The 58-year-old did not miss any game time with the bloody nose and continued to officiate the Oklahoma City-Minnesota clash.  

Scott Foster gets kicked and hit in the face. 😬(h/t @LeagueAlerts) pic.twitter.com/d5L8pfk1Ux

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) May 23, 2025

NBA referee Scott Foster was tended to by medical professionals after taking a grisly slap

Foster had to go to the sidelines as his nose dripped blood and get it clogged up with a towel

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Fans on social media joked that Foster would give Shai Gilgeous-Alexander multiple free throws for him getting hit in the face. 

Foster has earned the nicknames ‘Agent 48’ over the years with his jersey number, as well as ‘The Extender’ for how trailing teams in playoff series appear to do better when he is officiating games. 

In two separate surveys, one in 2016 from the Los Angeles Times, and another from 2023 in The Athletic, Foster was voted as the worst NBA referee by anonymous groups of players. 

He did not suffer multiple injuries on the play, but it appeared Randle’s foot also kicked Foster in the stomach during the jump ball.   

The score was only 2-2 when Foster’s injury occurred, giving him plenty of calls to make with a busted nose.