His demand: discipline and hard work.

Nine hours after learning he would take the Kings' reins from Reggie Theus, Natt said he felt he got a vote of confidence from his players Monday night in a 118-103 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves at Arco Arena.

That, veteran center Brad Miller said, was the goal as the Kings posted their second-largest victory this season.

"I'm looking forward to going out there and working for Kenny now," Miller said after contributing 14 points and 10 rebounds. "I'm looking forward to more accountability on everyone. Sometimes you need change to get more energy and enthusiasm around here. I think the whole team needed a shot of life."

And Natt plans on giving daily doses by simplifying the Kings' offense and installing more pick-and-rolls.

"The strength of our team has always been pick-and-roll situations, and that was one of the primary focuses for me this morning, as far as putting them in simple plays we already had in our arsenal," said Natt, who spent nine seasons as an assistant to Utah coach Jerry Sloan and three seasons as a Cleveland assistant before taking the lead assistant role in Sacramento last season.

Kings Basketball president Geoff Petrie told Theus of his firing Monday morning, but he spent the weekend having lengthy conversations with co-owners Joe and Gavin Maloof and conducting an informal interview with Natt on Sunday. Petrie said he was impressed by Natt's credibility and plan to simplify the strategy.

"He knows the league," Petrie said. "He knows our players. He's been to three NBA Finals on two different teams and worked for some excellent coaches and has certainly paid his dues. We'll support him and our players. I believe in the resilience of our players. As long as they want to play for something better and to try something different, I think they'll do fine."

As does Gavin Maloof, who said the losing under Theus simply had to stop.

"First of all, I want to thank Reggie for his hard work and dedication and loyalty to the franchise," Maloof said by phone. "That was never a question. I think it was just a lot of losses. They were piling up, and it seemed like the franchise wasn't going in the right direction. Again, he worked hard, did his best. And in the end, it wasn't good enough."

The Kings played hard for Natt, who said he plans to have a much more disciplined team, with no one looking the other way if players are late or break team rules.

"I've been told that I have the authority to do whatever I want," Natt said when asked if he had the front office's backing on such matters. "They are supporting me 100 percent in my decisions, and I've informed them that the only way that I know of doing things is the Sloan discipline way. And I can't change that. And they were receptive of that."

Spencer Hawes said waiting for the ax to fall on Theus had caused a disruption.

"It's hard to say it's a weight off our shoulder, but you hear so many rumors about it," Hawes said.

Some players said the Kings' offensive package was too complicated under Theus. For one night -- albeit against a woeful opponent -- Natt's changes worked.

"We had a whole lot of plays (under Theus)," Quincy Douby said. "Today, in shootaround (Natt) made a few plays simpler. You know, quick hitters. It definitely will be easier in my opinion."

Call The Bee's Melody Gutierrez, (916) 326-5521. To get breaking news alerts and game scores sent to your phone, text Kings to 72737.