Warriors guard Chris Paul bluntly addressed his ejection on Wednesday night that resurfaced his longstanding feud with NBA referee Scott Foster.
“It’s personal,” Paul told reporters when asked about his exit from Golden State’s 123–115 loss to the Suns in Phoenix.
“We had a situation some years ago, and it’s personal. … It’s a situation with my son. … I’ve got to do a better job of making sure I stay on the floor for my teammates, but yeah, that’s that.”
When asked to elaborate on the situation involving his son and Foster, Paul alluded to a meeting that took place during his time with the Clippers involving multiple parties, including his former coach Doc Rivers and former official Bob Delaney.
“I had a meeting with [Foster], my dad, Doc Rivers, Bob Delaney and all them. … It was a whole thing, and it’s still been a thing for a while.”
CP3 says “it’s personal” with Scott Foster and it involves Chris Paul’s son.
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) November 23, 2023
CP3 also reveals he had a private meeting with his dad, Scott, Doc Rivers, and Bob Delaney about it during his tenure with the Clippers. pic.twitter.com/acNy4h4Muv
Although it’s unclear exactly what caused the rift off the floor between Paul and Foster, the tension on the court has been palpable. As a member of the Suns last spring, the future Hall of Fame point guard finally ended a 13-game playoff losing streak in games officiated by Foster.
Wednesday night’s chapter began with Paul arguing a foul call and ended with Foster issuing the point guard two technical fouls and the resulting ejection.
There seems to be no end in sight to the tension between these two, and it will continue to be a storyline whenever Foster is assigned games involving Paul and the Warriors moving forward.