The Nuggets had a Monday deadline to come to rookie extensions with Christian Braun and Peyton Watson before the season started. They came to a last-minute agreement on a five-year, $125 million deal with Braun, but the deadline came and passed without any deal for Watson.
That means Watson will play out his final season on a rookie deal in Denver, then become a restricted free agent next summer. The Nuggets will have the right to match any offer for Watson, but it’s going to boil down to money, and the owners won’t be willing to pay.
League sources told Jake Fischer that the Nuggets have indicated an unwillingness to pay the luxury tax next season, which means major cost-cutting moves are coming. As it stands after Braun’s deal, the Nuggets are dangerously close to the second apron, and that’s with no deals for Watson or any other expiring free agents.
Even if Watson is willing to accept a team-friendly deal, the Nuggets aren’t going to be able to add to their payroll, which means Watson will almost certainly end up as trade bait or walk for nothing.
Nuggets’ financial crisis won’t allow them to sign Watson
If the Nuggets proceed with their current roster, they’d be just $7 million below the second apron for the 2026-27 season. Watson’s next deal will almost certainly start at a number higher than $7 million, which will make that contract a non-starter for Denver.
The owner doesn’t want to pay the tax, never mind being above the second apron. That means they are going to have to move some major salary around before next season, which could include shopping Watson around.
He’d be an attractive young piece to attach to Zeke Nnaji to try and get off his deal. He could also be moved in a deal with a star to bring back cheaper talent. If nothing works out, the Nuggets may even dump him for a pick, just to save money.
And in the worst-case scenario, he gets an offer in free agency that the Nuggets refuse to match, and he simply walks for nothing. Regardless of how exactly it plays out, it’s becoming clear that Watson does not factor into the Nuggets’ long-term plans.
Sadly, this is almost surely his last season in Denver. The investment in draft capital and development will all be for nought, and Watson will go on to play his prime years in another uniform. All because the Kroenkes are too cheap to go all-in for Nikola Jokic’s prime.