The cheers began when the man and his signature hoodie took the court for pregame warmups on Wednesday night.
They only grew louder from there.
Whenever Carmelo Anthony was involved in the action the rest of the night, the crowd showered the former Knicks star with love in his second game at the Garden since he was traded away in 2017.
Anthony looked right at home, turning back the clock for a night and scoring a season-high 26 points, though it came in a losing effort as the Knicks thrashed the Trail Blazers 117-93.
“The love was definitely felt tonight from the fans that was here, from the city as a whole, just being back,” Anthony said while wearing a Manhattan RLFD jacket. “For me to get that ovation — I think I’ve always had the love from the city like that, but to be back in this building where I spent so many years, that love felt extremely good tonight.”
Anthony got a loud ovation when he was the last Trail Blazer introduced pregame and heard cheers almost every time he touched the ball — even more when he hit a shot. That came often, as he went 11-for-17 from the field and 3-for-5 from deep. He added seven rebounds and did not record an assist in 31:17.
Wednesday marked Anthony’s 20th game with the Trail Blazers since they signed him in November. He has fit in nicely as a third option behind Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum, but he often looked like the primary scorer on this night. During an 11-point third quarter, Anthony went into isolation mode on multiple occasions, with the crowd buzzing more each time he did, as if the 35-year-old was back in the old days.
“Back to the old days? You aging me now,” Anthony said with a laugh. “I was just playing basketball, man. I think the guys who have been here have been seeing those moves for a long time. I don’t think I was doing anything special.”
Before Wednesday, Anthony’s only trip back to the Garden since leaving the Knicks came on Dec. 16, 2017 — almost three months after he was traded to the Thunder. He received a huge ovation pregame that night but then got booed when he touched the ball while shooting just 5-of-18 for 12 points in a loss.
On Wednesday, Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts ended Anthony’s night unceremoniously, subbing him out during a timeout with 4:45 left in the fourth quarter. The crowd broke into a “We want Melo” chant minutes later, to no avail.
But Anthony took it all in, even thinking about whether his jersey will one day be retired at the Garden.
“I did glance up at the rafters a little bit today during the national anthem,” Anthony said. “They say in life you gotta envision, so I was envisioning, see that thing hanging up there.”
For more on the Knicks, listen to the latest episode of the “Big Apple Buckets” podcast:
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