Holdsclaw to Miss the Sparks’ Opener

Sparks forward Chamique Holdsclaw, a three-time All-Star, will not be with the team for its WNBA season opener Sunday against Seattle while tending to a family matter, team officials said. There is no timetable for her return.

Coach Joe Bryant said Friday that Holdsclaw left Los Angeles early this week with the team’s permission. It was thought that she might return Friday. But Holdsclaw’s situation, which Bryant would only say did not involve her directly, had not been resolved. The Sparks will travel to Seattle today.

“Everybody knows how easy the game comes to her. And there’s no doubt we will miss her,” Bryant said. “But we’ve worked hard and are looking forward to the challenge of playing Seattle. The other players know they must do their part.

“The most important thing is she goes and handles her personal business. She can take as much time as she needs.”

Johnny Buss, the team’s president, said he was concerned, “but she gave us the reasons, and they were family reasons rather than personal reasons.”

Added Buss: “We’re hoping she comes back for the Charlotte game. I heard she is trying to get there for the Seattle game, but we have told her to take care of the problem.”

Bryant said he had not decided who would start in Holdsclaw’s place.

Holdsclaw, 28, spent her first six WNBA seasons in Washington before going to Los Angeles last year in a trade for DeLisha Milton-Jones and the Sparks’ 2005 first-round draft pick.

Last season, the former Tennessee star’s 17-point scoring average led the Sparks and ranked third in the league. Holdsclaw was second to Lisa Leslie on the Sparks in rebounding, averaging 6.8. Holdsclaw also helped L.A. secure a place in the Western Conference playoffs, where the team was eliminated in the first round.