Melo Shines in Home Debut, Gets Huge Ovation From Rip City Fans

Carmelo joined the Portland Trail Blazers in the middle of their six-game road trip. He played the final four games of the trek, averaging 16 points in 29.5 minutes per game. It wasn’t until Wednesday night that he finally debuted for his new hometown crowd, and it was worth the wait.

Melo dropped 19 points in his home debut on an extremely efficient 9-of-11 shooting night. The fans loved him while he was on the floor helping Portland secure a 136-119 win over his former team, Oklahoma City, and they took it even further when he exited the game at the 9:15 mark in the fourth quarter. Up by 32 points over the Thunder, the crowd gave Melo a huge ovation and let their new star know he’s welcome in Rip City.

Since joining the club, Melo has gone for double figures in all five of his games. He’s now averaging 16.6 points per game.

While No. 00 got all the mainstream attention, three other Blazers went for 20-plus points — Damian Lillard, 27; CJ McCollum, 22; Hassan Whiteside, 21.

The win was the second in a row for Portland, who will face off against Chicago at home the day after Thanksgiving.