Fisher's status for Game 2 of the Jazz's playoff series against Golden State was still undetermined. The veteran guard missed Game 1 on Monday and was excused from practice Tuesday as well.

Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said Kevin O'Connor, the team's senior vice president of basketball operations, had talked with Fisher and believed that he would return for Game 2, although Sloan's report was that Fisher "wasn't sure" about his availability.

Sloan also was asked if Fisher's situation was something that could take him away from the team at times the rest of the playoffs. "We're aware of the situation but all those details I can't deal with," Sloan said. "Family comes first as far as any player is concerned."

"Basketball is minor," Sloan added. "It doesn't even amount to anything. People get all upset about a person missing or not being able to be here. I feel bad for the player. I can't worry about what happens out here. The player is more important than us or anything else as far as I'm concerned."

Should Fisher return in time, Sloan said he likely would start him. If not, Gordan Giricek would start in Fisher's place and rookie Dee Brown again would serve as the Jazz's backup point guard. Brown played well in key fourth-quarter minutes in Game 1 against Golden State.

"We know what the situation is so our support is with (Fisher)," forward Matt Harpring said. "We know he's making the right decisions."

Spark plug

Andrei Kirilenko frames everything about playing the freewheeling, free-shooting Warriors in terms of stopping their "spark." He was asked how he defines what seems like such an apt description of how Golden State plays.

"It's momentum of the game, it's rhythm of the game," Kirilenko said. "Don't give them make like three, four, five shots in a row or make good plays in a row. Those kind of things killing teams.

"If we get like four, five shots in a row, we on a roll. We feel great. We're running. We're making shots. We start scoring. We start like playing great defensively. Same with them. Don't let them catch that."

The Big O

The Warriors' home-court advantage at Oracle Arena precedes them in this series, with Golden State having won all three games at home against Dallas in the first round. That would seemingly increase the importance of the Jazz taking a 2-0 lead heading to Oakland.

Not that Sloan necessarily saw things that way.

"Fans don't play. It's the players that play," Sloan said. "That's what you've got to have wherever. As our team gets more experienced, hopefully guys will play just as well on the road or at home or wherever.

"It was always kind of interesting, John Stockton and Karl Malone played all these years and their stats on the road was almost the same as they were at home. That's what you hope you have happen. Guys learn how to play together and give the same effort every night."

Blast from the past

Jeff Hornacek was part of the last Jazz team to advance out of the first round of the playoffs in 2000 and the retired guard stopped by EnergySolutions Arena to check up on the Jazz at shootaround. Hornacek, who lives in Phoenix, was in town on business.

"The great thing about the Jazz organization is win or lose it's really no different," Hornacek said. "Guys play hard, they play as a team. Some years it's going to go well, some years it might not. They have all the pieces now that can propel them through these playoffs.

"They just have to continue to do what they are best at and play as a team. That's a rarity nowadays. That's why the Jazz are a final eight team so far and probably will go even further. The best teams that are still in it are guys that play as a team."