Sensing a team consumed with doubt and discouragement after its 2-5 start, Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy went to work yesterday on winning the hearts and minds of his players, starting with Latrell Sprewell and Allan Houston. If they were "structurally flawed? (Van Gundy's term) last season when those two were sharing shots with Glen Rice, the coach has to convince them the Knicks are not fatally flawed this season because of their lack of size in the frontcourt.

Sprewell suggested during the preseason that the Knicks might have a hard time making the playoffs because general manager Scott Layden didn't address their need for size and low-post scoring. After the Knicks were crushed on Saturday by a Golden State team that won 17 games last season, Houston acknowledged they aren't as talented as the perennial playoff contenders of the past decade.