The Denver Nuggets had plenty of reasons to hesitate before moving Peyton Watson, but six games into his Cleveland Cavaliers stint, the early returns are making that decision look a lot cleaner.
Watson has been a rough fit to start the year in Cleveland. Bleacher Report even labeled him the Cavs’ “biggest problem,” and the explanation starts with the same issue that likely made Denver wary of giving him a major extension in the first place: his offense.
Through six games, Watson is shooting just 37.1% from the field and 16.7% from three. He has also already missed two games with a right hamstring injury, the same one that kept him out of the first round of the playoffs against the Minnesota Timberwolves last year.
The shooting numbers are bad enough, but the fit has been just as shaky. According to Databallr, Cleveland is 16.8 points better per 100 possessions with Watson off the floor.
That’s a massive gap for a player trying to settle in alongside James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, and Jarrett Allen. In that group, Watson is essentially the fifth option, and he’s been struggling badly in that role.
That’s why the Nuggets’ side of the story matters here. There was real debate about whether Denver should have matched the four-year, $88 million deal Cleveland gave him.
Watson had put together a short burst of strong offensive play, but it came while Nikola Jokic, Cameron Johnson, and Christian Braun were out, with Aaron Gordon also missing time in some games. Watson stepped into the void and delivered.
The problem was that injuries kept him sidelined once the starters came back, so Denver never got a full healthy look at how he would function in that setting.
Even if Watson had stayed, there was no guarantee the same issues wouldn’t have surfaced in a bigger role. Denver also would have had to move Johnson to keep him, and Johnson has settled in exactly where the Nuggets need him: as the three-point specialist.
He’s shooting 40% from deep after hitting 43.0% last season. On top of that, Denver landed a 2031 unprotected first-round pick in the deal.
The Nuggets also came out with a cheaper and better-fitting piece in Trevon Brazile. The rookie has been one of the best defenders in the league to start the year, and the numbers back up how well he’s blended in. Denver is plus-17.1 per 100 possessions with Brazile on the floor.
So far, the move has worked out for Denver. The Nuggets kept the cleaner fit, picked up a future first-rounder, and avoided the kind of contract headaches Watson is already creating in Cleveland.
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