Reggie Theus stood at the ready for a post-practice media session Monday, wearing a smile as he almost always does even if there wasn't much reason for it.

Before the Kings' coach began with his daily analysis and insight, a reporter started things off by saying, "Another one bites the dust, huh?"

Theus, understandably, wasn't quite sure exactly which of his many trying situations was being addressed.

This time it was forward Mikki Moore, who turned his right ankle against San Antonio on Sunday and will not make the trip for a back-to-back set in Memphis and New Orleans.

But the topic could have been the absences of Kevin Martin and Francisco García, his injured core players who also will remain in Sacramento to mend their ailments. The comment also could have been in regard to consecutive two-point home losses, a double whammy that hadn't taken place at Arco Arena since March 1992, when the Kings lost consecutive one-point games.

Yet Theus, looking far from embattled despite recent speculation about job security, said he is trying to keep a positive outlook. And as the Kings prepared to face the 3-7 Grizzlies tonight before meeting the powerhouse Hornets on Wednesday, Theus is positive one facet of his team's game must be present even if three of his players are not: the aggressive play of Beno Udrih.

The Kings' point guard was at his best against the Los Angeles Clippers last Wednesday, pushing the tempo and penetrating the lane in a controlled-chaos performance that led to a career-high 30 points and seven assists. But Breakneck Beno was just a tad more measured in losses to Phoenix and San Antonio, Theus said, and so the longstanding conversation between coach and player on style of play resumed.

"Last year when (Udrih) came here, it took me day after day after day of just telling Beno that he has to turn the corner (hard on pick and rolls)," said Theus, who had not decided who would take Moore's spot in the starting lineup. " 'Beno, you have to be aggressive.' I'm consistently telling him that. I told him the other day, 'Beno, you have to be aggressive, you have to turn the corner, you have to probe the defense.' "

If not on the fast break or a secondary break, then in the halfcourt sets in which Theus has been relying on high-post pick and rolls because of the injuries.

"His ability to score off of pick and roll is going to open up his ability to get assists," Theus said. "If I was playing for a coach like me, and my coach was telling me this, I'd be looking to get 40 every night. Not that that's going to happen, but that would be my attitude. And that doesn't mean take bad shots, but he knows what I'm talking about.

"That means being aggressive all the time, and you've got to play hard. You've got to grind yourself every time. A lot of what we do, especially without the other guys, is we need to put him in pick and roll because that's where we get our easier baskets."

While the Kings' penchant for running the offense through center Brad Miller at the high post hinders Udrih's ability to tally assists, he repeatedly has expressed a desire to improve in that category. And while his current average (4.1 per game) ranked 22nd among point guards entering Monday and is down from his rate of last season (4.3), it's his turnovers that concern his coaches.

Last season, Udrih's assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.91 was 41st among 42 NBA point guards. He is currently at a 1.55 ratio, ranked 42nd among 43 point guards this season. His turnovers (2.6 per game) ranked him 36th in the league among point guards entering Monday.

Udrih, who averaged 20.5 points in the last four games, said he knows what he must do.

"Now that I've got myself back in the shape that I want to be in, I'm just trying to be aggressive," he said. "It's tough (without) Kevin and then 'Cisco' and then Mikki. … We can't feel bad for ourselves. We've just got to go out there and play with what we've got."

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