The Denver Nuggets can only blame themselves for the position that they're in right now with Peyton Watson. It's not so much that they paid Christian Braun over him last offseason, but more so what they paid Braun, as that gives Watson a baseline as to what he should get. It could be what drives the 23-year-old away, turning their current restricted free agency problem into a catastrophe.
Denver reportedly offered Watson a five-year, $70 million contract, and, in case you need the reminder, Braun signed a five-year, $125 million deal. If P-Wat had accepted that deal, that'd mean his average annual salary would be $14 million, $11 million less than Braun's average annual salary.
Every single offer that the Nuggets make to Watson's camp will be compared to Braun's contract, and that's how it should be. Denver can't win, but then again, it can only blame itself for that.
If Watson isn't willing to take anything less than Braun's $25 million average annual salary, he could pick up his $6.5 million qualifying offer, setting him up to be an unrestricted free agent next summer. Or if he doesn't want to do that (as that'd be very risky) and a sign-and-trade doesn't materialize, he could re-sign with the Nuggets on a multi-year deal, but that wouldn't mean all was well.
Tension from how negotiations went this offseason could boil over to the start of the season, especially if Watson continues to be more of a factor than Braun.
Christian Braun's contract could push Peyton Watson away
Denver didn't know just what it was setting itself up for last year by giving Braun that contract. It didn't help that he had a down season, though even if he put up stats similar to 2024-25, this would still be a talking point.
With the season that Watson had, small sample size and all, he would still be seeking something comparable to what the Nuggets gave Braun. Denver would still be dealing with the same financial headaches as it is now, though there wouldn't be as much of a pressing need to keep P-Wat if Braun had continued on an upward trajectory this past season. It just adds insult to injury that he regressed.
Speaking of adding insult to injury, it could get even worse. Restricted free agency typically stretches on throughout the majority of the offseason, so it's not unusual that Denver and Watson haven't come to terms on something. It's also true that the longer it drags on, the higher the chance that the relationship between the two sides could deteriorate to the point of no return.
Not feeling valued usually doesn't work out all that great, and adding the money Braun got into the equation makes things worse. Time will tell if the Nuggets and Watson can come out on the other side unscathed (at least for the most part) or with an irreparable strain.
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