The New York Knicks beat the Milwaukee Bucks by 25 points on opening night, which was one of the NBA's biggest surprise results.

“It comes a point in time when you have to believe in something,” Anthony said.

Anthony is coming back from knee surgery.

“Any time you’re kind of dealing with the knee, you start second-guessing things. Am I going to come back the same way? Am I going to have my bounce again? Am I going to be the same player? Will I be able to move like this? Will I still have my first step or my second jump? I started thinking that,” Anthony told Yahoo. “The more time you’re sitting around, you can’t move, you can’t do nothing, a lot of things go through your mind dealing with something like that.”

The Knicks weren't a popular pick to make the playoffs.

“I believe in this team,” Anthony said. “I believe in the guys on this team. I know what they can do. I know the work that they put in. I know how hungry they are to get that tag off of them and bring New York back to where it should be. We know it’s a process.”

Kristaps Porzingis is in the New York Knicks' starting lineup for the first game of his NBA career.

Porzingis will start alongside Jose Calderon, Sasha Vujacic, Carmelo Anthony and Robin Lopez.

Porzingis averaged 7.5 points on 37 percent shooting in four preseason games. 

"I just think his versatility changes what can happen on the floor because of the multiple skills offensively and defensively," Derek Fisher said. "We obviously drafted him No. 4. Why should we hold him on the shelf? It doesn't mean he's going to start all season, but we feel like we've seen enough that he deserves the opportunity to show what he can do."

The Oklahoma City Thunder led the NBA in efficiency differential during the preseason with a mark of +12.5.

During the 14-15 preseason, the Golden State Warriors had the league's best mark with +11.0, which became a first indicator of their jump as title contenders.

Here's the full rankings from the 15-16 preseason:

1. Thunder: 12.5
2. Celtics: 11.6
3. Grizzlies: 11.5
4. Wizards: 10.4
5. Hornets: 10.0
6. Pistons: 7.1
7. Raptors: 5.6
8. Pacers: 4.7
9. Knicks: 4.0
10. Suns: 3.9
11. Nuggets: 3.5
12. Kings: 3.3
13. Magic: 2.8
14. Blazers: 1.8
15. Jazz: 0.4
16. Heat: 0.0
17. Hawks: -0.7
18. Rockets: -0.7
19. Nets: -1.0
20. Warriors: -1.3
21. Spurs: -1.9
22. Lakers: -2.1
23. Bucks: -3.4
24. Bulls: -3.6
25. Pelicans: -3.6
26. Clippers: -4.2
27. Cavaliers: -6.5
28. 76ers: -8.6
29. Mavericks: -10.7
30. Wolves: -11.0

The New York Knicks have waived Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Darion Atkins, DaJuan Summers, Travis Trice II and Wesley Saunders.

Antetokounmpo played last season for the Knicks' D-League affiliate and was widely expected to make their team this season, but played sparingly in the preseason.

Antetokounmpo was originally drafted by New York in second round (51st overall) of 2014 NBA Draft. He was signed on Aug. 7, 2015 after playing for Westchester Knicks during the 2014-15 season.

Atkins was signed as a free agent on Sep. 10 and appeared in three preseason games.

Summers was signed as a free agent on Sep. 22 and averaged 2.5 points and 1.0 rebounds over 5.8 minutes in four preseason games.

Trice was signed as a free agent Sep. 22 and scored four total points over 14 minutes in two preseason games.

Saunders signed as a free agent on Sep. 10 and appeared in two preseason games.

Jeremy Lin was open to returning to the New York Knicks this offseason and had his agent reach out to the team.

“There was no conversation other than them telling me they weren’t interested,” said Lin.

Lin signed a two-year, $4.3 million contract with the Charlotte Hornets, which was a significant pay cut from the $25 million deal he signed with the Houston Rockets back in 2012.

“I’ve always been open to it, ever since I, you know, I don’t want to say I necessarily left, ever since (they decided they didn’t want to re-sign me),” Lin said. “But I’ve always been open to it. But I don’t think they’re as open to it."

The first three-man season preview, as Jason Concepcion (@netw3rk) and and Jared Dubin (@JADubin5) host Nate Duncan (@NateDuncanNBA) to preview the New York Knicks season.  

Topics include their grades for Knicks' management since Phil Jackson took over, what to think of Derek Fisher as a coach, Kristaps Porzingis' ceiling, and whether Carmelo Anthony is all the way back.

The two inveterate Knicks optimists also offer their predictions for the season.

Subscribe to the Dunc'd On Basketball Podcast on iTunes or via the XML feed.

Click here for other team previews from the Dunc'd On Basketball Podcast.

Carmelo Anthony has "challenged" the coaching staff to single him out and hold him accountable in film sessions if he's not doing things correctly on either end of the floor.

Anthony has been working harder on the defensive end of the floor in the preseason.

"I kind of challenged the staff to kind of push me and stay on me when I'm not doing something," Anthony said. "Call it out in the film session so everybody can see that and hear that. By them doing that, when that time comes, it kind of forces me to be at the top level of my game on both ends of the court.

"Right now it's just a couple clips here and there, but for the most part I want them to do that. I think it brings the best out of me and if you bring the best out of me I think it will bring the best out of everyone on the team."

Kristaps Porzingis injured his left upper quad during practice on Sunday.

Porzingis had an MRI and it is not deemed serious.

Porzingis has suffered three non-contact injuries since June. 

Matt Barnes claims he went to his ex-wife's house to check on his six-year-old twin sons and not to confront Derek Fisher.

Barnes was at his home in Marina del Rey around 10 p.m. Saturday when he got a text from his son Carter that concerned him.

"I'm like, first of all, why are you still up? It's like 10 o'clock at night," Barnes said. "So I text back, 'I love you and I miss you too.' Then I FaceTimed him. I'm just like, 'Hey, what's up buddy?'

"Now, Carter is like the rambunctious one. He's always jumping off the walls. And when I saw his face, he was just sitting there, and I knew something was wrong. I was like, 'What's wrong, Carter?' and he shook his head, 'No.' Then he lays his head down on the couch, puts a pillow in front of his face and says, 'Mommy's friend Derek is here.'

"This wasn't a phone call. We were on FaceTime. I could see him and the look on his face."

The New York Post reported that Barnes texted a friend that he assaulted Fisher and took revenge on Govan.

“I kicked his ass from the back yard to the front room, and spit in her face,” the text read, according to the source.

"I can't believe people think I was some maniac driving 95 miles and listening to Tupac to go beat somebody up," Barnes said. "No. I live 15 minutes away, and I was going over to check on my kids because they seemed uncomfortable. That was my main reason for going over there."

If Kobe Bryant decides to continue his career in the NBA and is unable to agree upon a new deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, league insiders say his available options are likely to be slim.

One executive mentioned the New York Knicks and another brought up the Los Angeles Clippers as teams possibly interested in signing Bryant.

"The problem that Kobe has that's different from anybody else is that he doesn't really have any allies in the league," an executive said. "He's only known the Lakers, and he destroys everything in his path. I'm not naming names, but some of his former coaches are probably not going to speak fondly of him. [But] you really limit yourself of places that he could possibly go. I don't know of anybody who in their right mind would say getting him in their organization would be a great idea."