Carmelo Anthony coming back to Blazers

Carmelo Anthony is coming back for an 18th season, agreeing Saturday night on a one-year deal to remain with the Portland Trail Blazers, a person with knowledge of the agreement confirmed to The Associated Press.

Portland gave Anthony an opportunity to extend his career last season and he rewarded the Blazers by starting all 58 of his appearances and averaging 15.4 points.

The announcement of his return delighted Blazers fans, but also the organization’s other players, including CJ McCollum. The Portland guard took to Twitter to express his excitement about Anthony’s new deal.

Portland has made a handful of other moves during the early stages of free agency this offseason.

On Friday, the opening day of free agency, Portland brought on Miami Heat forward Derrick Jones Jr. for the mid-level exception and re-signed Rodney Hood to a two-year deal. The Blazers also unloaded Mario Hezonja in a three-team trade to acquire Enes Kanter. The former Celtics center returns to Portland to provide depth in the team’s frontcourt.

Anthony is currently 15th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list with 26,446 points. That’s only 50 points behind No. 14 Tim Duncan, 220 points behind No. 13 Dominique Wilkins, 266 points behind No. 12 Oscar Robertson and exactly 500 points back of No. 11 Hakeem Olajuwon.