The Nuggets’ ongoing standoff with restricted free agent Peyton Watson has taken on a sharper edge, and now there’s another layer to the dispute. Denver already has a contract gap with the 23-year-old, who is reportedly looking for something in the range of $20 million to $28 million per year after a breakout season. But according to Anthony Slater, the team also has concerns about how Watson handled his injury recovery during last season’s first-round series against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Slater reported that “part of the belief” inside the Nuggets is that Watson sat out the entire series “to protect his pending restricted free agency” rather than risk aggravating the injury before the offseason. That came even though Denver kept checking on him throughout the series. Watson was said to have made little to no progress in April as the Nuggets battled Minnesota and ultimately fell 4-2.
The contrast Denver saw in that series matters here, too. The Nuggets watched Anthony Gordon push through calf tightness and play in the same matchup, while Watson remained out. Slater didn’t identify his source, but the reporting points directly back to the Nuggets front office, and that kind of detail can easily bleed into negotiations.
Watson’s market is already forming beyond Denver. He has reportedly drawn sign-and-trade interest from the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Clippers, Milwaukee Bucks and Atlanta Hawks. And with restricted free agents not facing the qualifying-offer deadline until October 1, there’s no real pressure for either side to move fast.
On the court, Watson gave the Nuggets plenty to like last season. He started 40 games, posted career-best numbers and, for the first time since his rookie year, hit better than 40% of his three-point attempts. That production should keep him in demand, even if the price tag remains the big question.
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Nuggets Just Lost One Potential Answer Behind Jamal Murray
The Nuggets entered the summer with Jamal Murray still needing a reliable partner in the backcourt, and Tyus Jones now looks like the most straightforward answer as the backup point guard. Even so, there has been lingering discussion that Denver could use another guard who can steady the offense when Murray sits, especially after last seasons roster churn made depth behind him a real point of emphasis.
Russell Westbrook had been part of that conversation as a possible reunion option, the kind of familiar name who could have given Denver another layer of experience and pace off the bench. Instead, with Westbrook officially stepping away after 18 NBA seasons, the Nuggets lose one more potential path to reinforcing that spot, leaving the front office to weigh whether the current setup is enough or whether the backcourt still needs a different kind of answer. [Read more 🡒]
Nuggets Still Have One Offseason Problem Fans Can't Ignore
The Nuggets have spent the offseason trying to solve a problem that keeps hanging over the roster: who can actually create offense when Nikola Joki and Jamal Murray are not carrying the load? Peyton Watsons possible return has been part of the conversation, whether through a standard stay-put scenario or a sign-and-trade, but even that kind of move does not really answer the deeper question facing Denvers bench and second unit.
Financial limits have made the search even trickier, which is why the list of realistic names has stayed fairly narrow. Tyus Jones and Ben Simmons are among the fallback options being discussed, but each comes with its own uncertainty, and the Nuggets still need a dependable shot creator who can take pressure off their stars without forcing the team to compromise everywhere else. [Read more 🡒]