Absence Still Not a Concern

The Sparks will enter the second week of the WNBA season without All-Star forward Chamique Holdsclaw. But team officials said Saturday they remained unconcerned even though there is still no definite date for her return.

Holdsclaw, an eight-year veteran and three-time All-Star, left the team with permission before the regular season started to attend to what was termed a family matter on the East Coast.

She was not with the Sparks (2-1) for the first half of their season-opening six-game trip. The team returned to Los Angeles on Friday and resumed practicing Saturday. The Sparks will leave for Chicago on Monday. They will play there Tuesday, in Minnesota on Wednesday, and finish the trip in New York on Saturday.

Coach Joe Bryant said Sparks officials have been in telephone contact with Holdsclaw almost daily, and are not yet nervous about her absence.

“We’re just going to handle our business and try to do what we did on this past road trip,” Bryant said. “After the loss in Seattle, we made some adjustments in Charlotte and San Antonio and things went well for us. We’re just going to move on to these next three road games and hopefully try and get all three.

“This is [Holdsclaw’s] personal business, her private business. We’ve talked about basketball. I stay out of the other stuff.”

Holdsclaw, a career 18-point scorer, was expected to be as vital to the team as center Lisa Leslie, who finished the first week as the WNBA’s leading scorer (25.2).

But the team came back from the road nicked up. Leslie has a bruised left arm and was held out of practice Saturday, although she is expected to play Tuesday. Point guard Temeka Johnson strained her right quadriceps in the Charlotte game and might not be available until the New York game.

“We’re not going to put any pressure on her to come back,” Bryant said of Johnson. “We’ll listen to the doctors and trainers because this is a long season.”

* WNBA BOX SCORES, D13