SEATTLE (AP) George Karl welcomed having a game on Sunday night to keep his mind from focusing solely on what will take place Monday.

Karl will be in Boise, Idaho on Monday when his son, Coby, has surgery to remove cancerous lymph nodes.

The surgery will be the second in 13 months for Coby Karl, who had his thyroid removed after being diagnosed with papillary carcinoma, a form of treatable cancer. He also underwent chemotherapy to try to kill off any remaining cancer cells shortly after his surgery.

``I talked to him today. He's going to pick us up at the airport tonight. I don't think we'll go out drinking beers tonight,'' Karl said before Sunday night's game against Seattle. ``We're ready for the challenge. We've done it before. We're a family and we'll be strong for him.''

Karl has said there is a chance he will miss a couple of games after the surgery is performed. The Nuggets play the Lakers on Tuesday and in Sacramento on Wednesday.

The lymph node cancer was discovered in mid-January before the Broncos played at Utah State. The younger Karl kept the diagnosis private until after Boise State lost to New Mexico State in the WAC tournament semifinals, ending the team's season.

Coby Karl led the Broncos with 14.8 points per game and was the team leader in minutes played, assists and 3-pointers. Karl finished his career third on Boise State's career scoring list with 1,698 points and is the school's career leader in games played, and 3-pointers made and attempted.

Coby Karl played in the NABC all-star game on Friday night in Atlanta.

(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)