The next stop for Norvel Pelle: an NBA two-way deal with the 76ers, inked earlier this week at the Training Complex.
But for the 6-foot-10 Pelle, there’s no settling -- he’s already preparing for his next step.
“It’s exciting, another chapter, another way to start working towards my other goal” said Pelle.
“I’m trying to get on that roster.”
He was referring, of course, to the Sixers' NBA roster.
Pelle begins his new deal following a G League season in which he received an All-Defensive team nod. In 2018-19, he averaged 11.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks in 22.8 minutes per game for the Blue Coats.
Pelle caught eyes when he took over a March 11 contest against the Westchester Knicks, producing a resounding 21-point, 22-rebound double-double. He also had six blocks.
“I couldn’t be more excited, ecstatic for Norvel,” said Blue Coats head coach Connor Johnson. “He had a great year last year, I think he showed what he can do as a rim protector, meeting people at the front of the rim.”
Johnson added that when it comes to big men, the Sixers organization values rim protection and finishing. Pelle checks both boxes.
Pelle’s career has been long and winding. Following high school in southern California, the now 26-year-old then went straight to the pros, making appearances with the Delaware 87ers in 2013-14 and 2014-15, before electing to play a few seasons abroad in Europe and the Middle East. Pelle has also represented Lebanon on the international stage.
“Being [abroad] by myself, I had to mature quick,” Pelle said.
He returned to the Sixers’ organization in 2018 for summer league, where he averaged 7.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game.
In his breakout 2018-19 season for the Blue Coats, Pelle attributed his progress to veteran help.
“When [Amir Johnson] came down to the G League, I picked his brain a little bit and he gave me some tips,” Pelle said Tuesday.
Now, once again a participant in the Sixers’ summer league minicamp, Pelle brings confidence, and an official new status to the group.