The Pool Report interview was conducted by KC Johnson (NBC Sports Chicago) with Crew Chief Scott Foster following tonight’s Knicks at Bulls game.

QUESTION:  Why was it ruled a flagrant 2 and not a flagrant 1?

FOSTER: By rule we considered the act unnecessary and excessive, therefore it’s a flagrant foul penalty 2.

QUESTION: Did intent weigh into the ruling? Was it considered intentional? 

FOSTER: No, intent is not a criteria for what we do when we are ruling on a flagrant foul penalty 2 or 1. However, wind up, impact and follow through, potential for injury, whether the act was a non-basketball play, and location of the contact as well as whether we thought it was a reckless act are all the criteria that we felt were met for this decision.

QUESTION: You spent a long time at the monitor? Was part of that time spent discussing whether or not it should be a flagrant 1 or 2?

FOSTER: We understood the impact of our decision on the game so we took our time with it. 

Also, we need all three referees to look at it from multiple angles because we need to unanimously agree when we eject someone at replay when it comes to flagrant foul penalties so all three referees have to agree to eject a player.