Younger Nelson has faith in assistants.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

DALLAS _ Donnie Nelson said he'll depend heavily on the Mavericks' legion of assistant coaches once he becomes the team's acting head coach after Wednesday's game against the Detroit Pistons.

That means assistants Del Harris, Sidney Moncrief and Charlie Parker will be among those whom Nelson will be counting on to offer advice on ways to keep the Mavericks in a winning mode.

"In a way I feel like I've got a dream-team-type coaching staff," Donnie Nelson said. "I've got Del, and I've got the utmost respect for Sid through growing up in Milwaukee, because he was my hero.

"And Charlie has worn every hat there is known to man in college and pro basketball, and is about as good of an advanced scout as there is in the league. So I feel like we've got the support system."

Nelson will replace his dad, Mavericks coach/general manager Don Nelson, who will have prostate cancer surgery Thursday. Don Nelson is expected to be out six to eight weeks, but Donnie Nelson and his staff hopes to keep the good times rolling.

"As all of the coaches that work with me in the summer league will tell you, I rely a lot on my assistants," Donnie Nelson said. "I just think it's stupid not to, especially a guy like Del.

"But will I make the key decisions? Absolutely. I'm not going to be a Nellie clone, but I've also been around long enough where it's not a situation where you're not going to see drastic changes at the end of games.