The New York Knicks have pulled an unusual move with their game notes prior to Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals on Saturday.
As part of their notes provided to the media, the Knicks released a referee breakdown that tracks the tendencies of the three officials slated to work Saturday’s Game 1 against the Philadelphia 76ers. The stats track how often referees call various violations, with Scott Foster ranking quite high in most categories.
https://twitter.com/FredKatz/status/1781747235530711063
Presumably, the Knicks track these things internally, but this is the first time they have made the data public. It is not something other teams do, either, and the timing — at the start of the playoffs — might raise some eyebrows as well.
The Knicks have been on the wrong end of some brutal calls this season, but most would argue they are no different from other teams in that regard. In fact, the Knicks have also benefitted from some questionable refereeing late in games.
This almost certainly will not have any impact on the series, but it certainly provides plenty of ammunition for fans that will want to pin any issues on Foster and his crew.
