Perth Wildcats coach Trevor Gleeson has dismissed suggestions the Illawarra Hawks are a dirty side, saying they play hard but fair basketball.
Adelaide import Jerome Randle lit the fuse last week when he labelled Illawarra a dirty team, while also adding that he dislikes all the Hawks players.
The trash talk backfired badly on Randle, with Illawarra notching an upset 2-1 semi-final triumph over the ladder-leading 36ers.
The Hawks will now take on Perth in a best-of-five grand final series, starting at Perth Arena on Sunday.
Gleeson was careful not to fuel the fire when asked if he agreed with Randle's assertion that Illawarra were dirty.
"Not at all," Gleeson said on Friday.
"They play hard, but fair, and it's the way it should be played.
"If you're going to talk, you've got to back it up.
"I coached one of the best talkers in the game in Homicide (Corey) Williams, but he could back it up."
The top two teams failed to qualify for the grand final, meaning the third-placed Wildcats will enjoy home court advantage over the Hawks in games one, three, and five (if necessary).
The Hawks were dealt a big blow when it was confirmed import Marvelle Harris would miss the grand final opener in order to fly back to the US to be by the side of his critically ill father.
Harris is expected to return in time for game two.
The Hawks are also sweating on the fitness of star big man AJ Ogilvy, who injured his ankle in Thursday night's 106-98 win over Adelaide.
Wildcats centre Matt Knight is free to play after escaping with a two-match suspended sentence for thrusting the ball into the face of Cairns guard Travis Trice.
If Knight reoffends, it means the two-game ban will be activated.
But Gleeson isn't worried one bit about the suspension tightrope, and is urging Knight to maintain his normal aggression.
"He's been playing great the past month," Gleeson said.
"We often say all the action's in the kitchen, get in the kitchen, and don't be out on the porch.
"Matty's always in there. When you're in the action, there's going to be some arms going around.
"That (incident involving Trice) was just a ball fake, and I'm glad we can move on from that."
The Wildcats are chasing a record eighth NBL title.
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