Do you remember Mars Blackmon? The unforgettable character from She’s Gotta Have It (1986) who became the face of Air Jordan ads in the ’90s alongside Michael Jordan. That was none other than Spike Lee, and it marked the beginning of a friendship between the Knicks’ superfan and basketball’s GOAT. But while MJ’s reign cemented him as an icon, it also crushed Lee’s Knicks over and over. Despite almost five decades of heartbreak, Lee now believes his team has a real shot this season.

Lee recently joined the Come And Talk 2 Me podcast, where he confidently declared, “This is our year.” The Knicks had just taken a tough loss to the Boston Celtics, but that didn’t shake his belief. “I’m not worried about what happened last night. We got a squad. I believe in Leon Rose, Coach Tibbs.”

And Knicks justified his excitement as in their home opener, they demolished the Pacers 123-98. Karl-Anthony Towns shined in his home debut with 21 points and 15 rebounds, while Jalen Brunson led the team with 26 points. Lee, of course, was courtside at Madison Square Garden, cheering them on with his signature enthusiasm.

On the podcast, Lee also reminisced about MJ, offering deep respect for athletes and the effort it takes to reach the top. “People don’t see the hard work, the sacrifices, the blood, sweat, and tears,” Lee said on the podcast. “And that’s why I have so much respect for athletes. I don’t care if you’re the last person on the team. You busted your a*s to get there.” But Lee couldn’t forget the pain Jordan caused his Knicks: “Michael Jordan, he killed us.”

Reflecting on MJ’s dominance, Lee added, “When Michael was ruling, man, he was like, what can you do?” Interestingly, Michael Jordan had at least 1 win against the Knicks in MSG in each of his 15 NBA seasons.

Lee also revealed on the podcast that both he and MJ were born in the same hospital. “There’s a hospital in Fort Greene called Cumberland Hospital. Bernard and Albert King were born there. Mike Tyson and the GOAT, Michael Jordan,” Lee shared. It seems their connection may have started from birth.

How the Spike Lee-Michael Jordan duo started

Interestingly, the heated rivalry between New York and Chicago never strained the bond between Spike Lee and Michael Jordan. In fact, Lee even paid homage to Jordan’s legendary “Double-Nickel” game against the Knicks in one of his Mars Blackmon commercials from the ’90s. “I’ve had the honor of being called a motherf****er by Michael Jordan many times,” Lee joked about their relationship. But how did this dynamic duo begin?

It all started when Jim Riswold, a copywriter at Nike’s ad agency, watched She’s Gotta Have It (1986). The film featured a character, Mars Blackmon, played by none other than Spike Lee, who also served as the film’s writer and director. Riswold was drawn to Blackmon’s obsession with Air Jordans and immediately saw potential. The next day, he reached out to Lee.

Spike had one condition: “I get to direct the spots, right?” And just like that, the ‘Spike and Mike’ series of Nike commercials took off. Lee’s ability to bring out a more human side of Jordan, who often struggled with acting, added a unique charm to the commercials.

Through Mars Blackmon, Spike managed to put every MJ fan in the spotlight, connecting them to the Air Jordan universe. While we might not see new ‘Spike and Mike’ collaborations today, the two legends remain lifelong friends, tied together by that iconic era.