Foster is entering his 30th year of refereeing in the NBA, and his spell in the hot seat has brought plenty of memorable moments along with it. Amidst the breaking news of a massive prove regarding fraud and cheating taking place at the highest levels of the NBA, Foster is back in the conversation as someone who could potentially have been involved in sports betting or other illegal activities in the world of basketball.

While his experience is valued – he has has refereed in a vast number of win-or-go-home game seven matches during the NBA playoffs during his tenure – he remains and instigatory figure in basketball, one called the NBA’s ‘only active celebrity referee’ in one Sports Illustrated article.

Nicknamed the ‘Extender’, Foster is called this for the tendency of teams that are losing a playoff series to go on and win a game or two when he takes over as referee, thereby extending the series further. In a 2023 poll taken of NBA players, over 25% voted for Foster as the worst referee in the league, the most amongst active referees. Foster has also been accused of taking matters very personally when it comes to teams and players, and has a long-running feud with Hall of Fame-bound guard Chris Paul.

Was Foster involved in the 2007 scandal that shook the NBA?

While he remains uncharged by FBI and law enforcement, the 58-year-old referee has had his fair few run-ins with the wrong side of basketball. Foster was implicated during the 2007 trial of former NBA ref Tim Donaghy, who pled guilty on counts of match fixing and fraud.

In an incident that brought into question the integrity of the NBA, Foster found his name included in the conversation. Phone call records in the build up to Donaghy’s end to his career revealed that he had been in close contact with Foster over the preceding years, which cast doubt in his participation at the time, but he ultimately was proven innocent as Donaghy was named as the only culprit of the scandal.

Later, Foster was also accused of sports gambling and fixing matches by all-star center Rudy Gobert, who received a hefty fine from the league office for making a suggestive finger-rubbing gesture at the referee to suggest he had accepted money to decide games.

With major NBA players and coaches like Terry Rozier and Chauncey Billups have been charged with the current investigation on behalf of the American FBI, Foster remains scot-free for the moment. However, with more than 30 arrests being made of high-profile figures in the sport, the NBA will undergo yet another reckoning just as the 2025/26 season begins.