“I said to myself, you’re here. Let’s …

“I said to myself, you’re here. Let’s make the best of it. Give it all you got. Don’t leave nothing in the tank. And then you can sleep at night,” Hardaway said. “That’s what I did. It does f–k with you mentally because it’s just — the Garden, the mystique of the Garden. You got Spike Lee on the sideline, you got all these stars, and they want to win so badly, and we weren’t winning. And I was a part of that negative tradition of the Knicks haven’t won in a while. And that bothered me too, because I felt like those fans out of all the fans in the NBA deserve to win. They’re loyal.”

When Air Jordans hit the sneaker scene, …

When Air Jordans hit the sneaker scene, Spike Lee got the call of a lifetime from Nike to star in a commercial alongside who most people call the greatest basketball player of all time. “I was completely surprised when it blew up. It changed the culture and I’m just happy I was a part of it,” Lee told “Good Morning America” on Monday about the 1991 commercial with Michael Jordan. “It was 100% accident. When I made that film, Mars [Blackmon] had to wear Jordans, that’s all it was.”

Lee, who created and starred as the …

Lee, who created and starred as the shoe-obsessed character in his film, “She’s Gotta Have It,” gave credit to Nike’s founder for giving his stamp of approval for the campaign. “Nike’s agency saw the film, called me up outta nowhere and said, ‘we want you to be in a national campaign with Michael Jordan, you play Mars Blackmon, but there’s one catch Michael Jordan has not seen the film and does not know who you are,’” Lee recalled, laughing about his early days in the industry. “We gotta give credit to Phil Knight. It’s his decision — to have a black guy be the face of your company — so give him credit and the rest is history,” he added.

As a basketball fan, Lee remembered …

As a basketball fan, Lee remembered what it was like sitting courtside during Jordan’s heyday at one of his favorite NBA stages. “New York City would be on fire when Michael Jordan would come to the Garden,” Lee said. “I think one of the reasons why Mike liked playing in the Garden is he understood that New York City, that basketball’s our game and we appreciate great performances.” “Even though he was killin’ us,” Lee said of the Knicks, who “couldn’t get past the Bulls — we had to see this guy.”

The footage, until it was unearthed for …

The footage, until it was unearthed for this project, had been locked in a vault at NBA Entertainment. Silver said many people — Spike Lee, Danny DeVito and more — expressed interest in putting together the documentary over the years and that it became a running joke between he and Jordan if it would ever be seen. Nearly a quarter-century later, the big moment has finally arrived. “We made it happen, but I would only say in all seriousness, this would not have happened if we had a specific project budget,” Silver said. “We would have had a zero under revenue and a large number under expense. I think it was more a gut feeling we had that it was our obligation to do this and we would spend what was necessary to capture what we knew was one of the greatest athletes and one of the greatest teams of all time.”

Do you think you could mediate a …

Do you think you could mediate a sit-down between James Dolan and Charles Oakley and Spike Lee? Rick Pitino: (Chuckle) I would love to try, ’cause I love Oakley and I love Spike. … The best thing to do is just everybody in a room, hash it out, speak it out, and become friends, that’s the best way to do it. If I was Jim Dolan, call up Spike, call up Oak, put ’em in a room, “Hey guys, let’s leave this best friends and let’s move on.”

In an aggressive attempt to promote its …

In an aggressive attempt to promote its June 27 outdoor festival at Flushing Meadows, the Big3 — a three-on-three professional basketball league — appeared to brand Dolan as having racial animus in a full-page ad that ran in Friday’s Post. The Big3 advertisement contains, at the top, a quote from Dolan’s chief antagonist, Charles Oakley, stating, “It’s a plantation over there.’’

Knicks alum Stephon Marbury is siding …

Knicks alum Stephon Marbury is siding with Spike Lee in the filmmaker’s battle with the team’s owner, Jim Dolan. Lee is boycotting Madison Square Garden after he was asked to use the VIP entrance, rather than the employee entrance he has used for 28 years, at a game Monday. “I mean, he just gotta go through a different door,” Marbury told Page Six, “but at the same time, I think Spike always deserved the red-carpet treatment, because he spent millions — probably $10 million — on floor seats going to the Garden all these years. I think they will figure it out.”