The story of Game 1 of the Rockets and Warriors second-round series was the officiating and Houston’s complaints about not getting calls on three-pointers in which they felt Golden State consistently were in the landing zone of shooters.
Some of those complaints are valid, but others have been shot down by the league, including the Last Two Minute Report, saying the no-call on Draymond Green’s contest of James Harden’s game-tying shot attempt was correct. Still, this is something that’s been brewing for a full year, as the Rockets feel they were robbed of a number of calls in last year’s Western Conference Finals, most notably in their Game 7 loss.
Entering Game 2, the officiating will be at the forefront of everyone’s minds, and Scott Foster’s presence on the game — who the Rockets do not like — will only further that. To take advantage of this attention, the good folks in the desert have decided to open a prop bet for Game 2 on the number of fouls that will be called, as Caesar’s books have set the number at 44.5.
I never thought we'd see a total fouls prop in the NBA, but here we are.
Caesars has opened total fouls in #Rockets–#DubNation Game 2 at 44.5
— Ben Fawkes (@BFawkes22) April 30, 2019
As Ben Fawkes notes, this is the first time I can really remember such a prop being offered, but with so much interest, they’ll likely get plenty of action. If you’re looking for an edge on what side to go with, Foster will team with Ed Malloy and Eric Lewis to make up the crew in Oakland on Tuesday night. This postseason, the five games refereed by Foster have seen an average of 50.6 fouls called per game, two Malloy games at 45.5, and four Lewis games at 41. That indicates maybe a slight edge on the Over, given that Foster is the crew chief. In Game 1, there were 45 fouls called in total.
