Notebook | Olympic goodbyes begin for Jackson, teammates

The sniffling began Friday.

Storm forward Lauren Jackson looked at teammate Sue Bird and thought about how much she'd miss her "best mate."

Jackson and Bird have nearly been inseparable since last fall when they linked in Russia to win EuroLeague and Russian Superleague titles for Spartak Moscow. But Jackson will leave Seattle today for a two-day vacation then return to her native Australia to train with her national team for the Olympics.

The Australians will have a team retreat then play two "friendlies" against Brazil before traveling to China for the Olympics in August. It'll be Jackson's third Games, first as captain of her squad.

"The Olympics has come up in conversation, and I'm going to miss Sue and Diana [Taurasi], too," said Jackson. "I hate playing against them. When you have friendships like that, it's very difficult to go out and compete."

Yet, Jackson said, all it takes is slipping on the Australian jersey to forget about those ties. She's won silver twice in the Olympics, losing both times to the Americans.

"It would be ridiculous for me to say that I'm not worried or concerned," Jackson said. "The thing is, America is a superpower and no one is denying them of that. But I know at the Olympic Games we're going to give it our best shot, and you never know what can happen. We have as much chance as anybody at beating the States — if we both get to the gold-medal game."

Team USA lost to Russia in the World Championships, clearing the path for Australia to win that title in 2006.

Jackson, the Storm's leading scorer (20.6), will miss five games due to the Olympics. Seattle is suspending her contract, so she will not be paid during the span.

Bird won't miss any games with the Storm and begins her Olympic duty after the July 27 game.

Storm coach Brian Agler said he hasn't seriously thought about who'll start in place of Jackson, a two-time MVP. A likely candidate is trade pickup Camille Little, who is averaging 17 minutes a game.

Little, an aggressive 6-foot-2 forward, has been the first post player off the bench ahead of third-year forward Shyra Ely and center Ashley Robinson. Little is averaging 5.2 points and 1.8 rebounds in five games with the Storm.

Note

• A Sparks spokeswoman said coach Michael Cooper had to be rushed to a hospital Friday due to a herniated disk, but Cooper denied those reports Saturday. He said he had a "doctor's appointment" due to a "cold" and that's why he left practice in a rush. He coached Saturday.