Baltimore basketball fans got a taste of something old and something new Thursday as the city hosted an NBA game for the first time since 1999.
The star attraction was Baltimore native Carmelo Anthony, playing professionally in his hometown for the first time ever.
The New York Knicks forward is one of the biggest names in the NBA, and his homecoming brought extra juice to what could've been just another preseason contest against the Washington Wizards.
So did the presence of former Baltimore Bullets and Knicks greats revisiting Baltimore Arena, where they waged one of the league's best rivalries in the 1960s and early 1970s.
It was clear that a sizable percentage of the sellout crowd of 12,376 had turned out to see Anthony. His No. 7 Knicks jersey was the most common up and down the packed stands. Small boys sported the same orange headband often favored by the former Towson Catholic star.
"Melo, give it to 'em tonight," one fan bellowed from the second deck. "You home, you home. Give it to 'em."
"Ohh!" the crowd shouted when Anthony sank his first jumper of the night two minutes in. He finished with 22 points in 29 minutes as the Knicks beat the Wizards, 98-89.
"It was a great feeling just being able to come here and feel that connection," Anthony said after the game. "I was once one of them kids who grew up here, so I can relate on a very different level."
Anthony had flown in Wednesday afternoon to surprise the children at the East Baltimore youth center that bears his name. He said he looked forward to playing a mere 10 minutes from the asphalt courts where he developed his game as a skinny grade schooler.
"It felt like a home game," he said.
Said Knicks coach Mike Woodson. "I know it's exciting times for him. It's always good to come home."