Jim Dolan was talking about the Rangers and then he was talking about the Knicks.

“Basketball is different than hockey,” the Garden executive chairman said during a conversation at his MSG office on Wednesday. “A great player in hockey is the difference, but a great player in basketball is the team.

“And I think we have a great player in Porzingis. We just have to build around him.”

Dolan, of course, was referring to Kristaps Porzingis, the 22-year-old wonder child who sustained a torn left ACL on Feb. 6 that ended his season, and whose recovery from surgery will sideline him for an indefinite period of time.

“I’ve been told everything from December to him being out for the season, so I don’t know what to expect on that,” Dolan said. “But we can’t just sit on our ass while he’s away. We need to develop a team and then integrate him into it when he comes back.”

Porzingis at times had a rocky relationship with the previous Knicks regime, which was led by Phil Jackson. That dynamic changed with last year’s promotion of Steve Mills to club president, replacing Jackson, and the hiring of Scott Perry as general manager. The Knicks, within the year, will have to decide whether to offer Porzingis a max extension.

First, though, the Knicks have to hire a coach to replace Jeff Hornacek, who was dismissed after the club went a cumulative 60-104 (29-53 this past year) under him while missing the playoffs in each of his two seasons on the bench.

“I think Hornacek had the same kind of issue that Phil did in that he didn’t grasp how different the players are now in the way they think and deal with management and the coaches,” Dolan said. “I think he was way behind on that.

“But I think Jeff is a good coach and he’ll do well when he’s hired by another team.”

Dolan said he is searching for a coach who will be able to manage his assistants and attendant organizational functions while also being able to delegate authority.

“The old-style coaching doesn’t work,” Dolan said. “A coach who tries to do everything himself isn’t going to be successful.

“The coaching search for the Knicks is similar in a lot of ways to the Rangers. I think the teams are in similar spots. We’re looking for people to develop players and to create a winning team. We have our lists of candidates, but the lists are still open.”

The Knicks have missed the playoffs five straight times and 11 of the past 14 seasons. Dolan lauded the fans for their devotion to the team.

“Our fans are great. The atmosphere they create is amazing,” he said. “Our final game of the season, the place was just rocking. It couldn’t have been better, and we beat the Cavaliers. So I want to do what I can to build a team here that can win the championship. That’s the objective behind everything we do.”

Hiring Jackson, of course, was supposed to kick-start the Knicks on their way back to the glory they enjoyed when he was the sixth man on their 1972-73 title run (he sat out the 1969-70 championship season while recuperating from a back issue).

“Everybody who wants to talk about the Knicks wants to ask me about Phil Jackson,” Dolan said, smiling and shaking his head. “The entire market wanted to me to hire him and when I did, the entire market said it was a great move. The only thing was, everyone said that I shouldn’t interfere with him.

“Three years later, everyone wanted to know when I was going to do something about Phil. The same people who told me not to interfere wanted me to interfere. But that’s OK. I just think that Phil underestimated the job.”

It’s not likely the new coach will underestimate his job, with or without Porzingis.