THE RECENT resurgence of the New York Knicks, winners of five in a row after Wednesday night's 82-79 win over the 76ers, has been directly attributed to the resignation of coach Mike D'Antoni on March 14 and the promotion of assistant Mike Woodson to head coach.

But how can a team, almost two-thirds of a way through a season, immediately become so much better because of a coaching change? The Knicks were wildly inconsistent under D'Antoni this season, having put together a seven-game winning streak to go with two six-game losing streaks, the last of which precipitated the resignation.

Sixers coach Doug Collins has been through midseason coaching changes, both as a coach and as a player. The quick success, he says, isn't so much about X's and O's, but perhaps due mostly to an attitude change by the players.

"In 1977, we went to the NBA Finals and the next year we started 2-4, and our coach was fired," said Collins, speaking of the Sixers and coach Gene Shue, who was replaced by Billy Cunningham. "Then after that, we won 14 out of 15.

"Usually anytime there's a coaching change, the one thing you see [improve] is the intensity. Mike D'Antoni is a very dear friend of mine, and he's a terrific coach. I'm sorry that it didn't work out for him in New York, and Mike Woodson's a really good guy. He's a guy who spent a lot of time in Atlanta and did a hell of a job there, and now is trying to put his fingerprints on it.

"Normally [with a new coach], there's a different excitement, you're not hearing the same voice. Maybe some guys figure they're going to get a chance to play. I think those things factor into a change. Some guys are affected the other way and are sorry to see the coach go. Normally what you see are more intensity, more aggression and passion. For whatever reason, it's probably more psychological more than anything else."

As the saying goes, you can't fire players. So when times get tough and coaches seem to have lost the players and/or the fans, it's usually the coach looking for another job.

"It's the tough part of our business," Collins said. "A coach gets let go when they've lost four or five in a row then the team wins six and it kicks you in the gut. It's the nature of the business. I don't think people realize, as a coach, all the things you go through and you feel. I was just kidding with [Temple coach Fran Dunphy], when you lose, you walk around town with your head down and your eyes down. Hester Prynne had the scarlet A; as a coach you have a scarlet L, for loser. It's just the nature of the business. It's a fraternity where everybody respects each other so much because everybody knows how it is. It's a tough profession."

Coach Doug Collins was looking for his 400th career win against the Knicks, but he'll have to wait. Collins, who has had stints in Chicago, Detroit and Washington, downplayed the significance of the milestone.

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Collins, on Knicks coaching change