It’s been one year and 11 days since Carmelo Anthony has played in an NBA game.
But that’s about to change.
Anthony will make his season debut Tuesday night with the Trail Blazers when Portland squares off against the Pelicans in New Orleans. In fact, he’ll be in the starting lineup, according to ESPN’s Marc J. Spears.
Anthony is expected to play around 20 minutes, a source told Spears.
Carmelo Anthony is starting https://t.co/BdAvIxV6bQ
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpearsESPN) November 19, 2019
Blazers head coach Terry Stotts expects Anthony will remain in Portland’s starting five as a power forward beyond his debut, per Spears.
Terry Stotts expects Melo to remain in the starting lineup at power forward past tonight. https://t.co/BdAvIxDvki
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpearsESPN) November 19, 2019
This will be the first time Anthony has played in an NBA game since Nov. 8, 2018 during his brief stint with the Rockets. Houston traded Anthony to the Bulls on Jan. 22, 2019, but Chicago waived him Feb. 1.
This deal with the Blazers marks a new beginning for Anthony. His contract currently is non-guaranteed, but will become fully guaranteed should he not be waived by 5 p.m. Jan. 7, 2020.
And his interest in the Blazers apparently is nothing new.
“I’ve always kept my eye on Portland,” Anthony said on his YouTube channel Monday night, as transcribed by ESPN. “It just didn’t work out other times, but now it seems like it’s a perfect opportunity.”
Anthony said he’s maintained solid relationships with Damien Lillard and CJ McCollum over the last few years. Now, he feels he can be of help to the 5-9 Blazers. To do that, he needs to put his past behind him, which he’s prepared to do.
“What happened before is the past. I can’t dwell on that,” Anthony said. “I learned from that. This happened at a point and time in my life where I do have a lot of clarity and understanding of different situations and just life, and my approach is totally different.”
Tip-off from Smoothie King Center is slated for 8 p.m. ET.
