The Nuggets have gotten lots of buzz for their offseason, but one important player who is flying under the radar a bit is Peyton Watson. Watson has shown flashes of being an elite defender and an athletic finisher, but he has struggled to shoot and find consistency enough to keep him in the rotation.
For the past five years, the Nuggets have invested in a youth movement that hasn’t yielded the results they hoped for. They’ve largely scrapped that plan, firing Michael Malone and Calvin Booth, then adding proven veterans Jonas Valanciunas, Tim Hardaway Jr., and Bruce Brown to fortify the bench.
That makes the future very murky for guys like Julian Strawther, Jalen Pickett, DaRon Holmes, and especially Watson. This will be his fourth season in the league, and despite his obvious talents, he has yet to scratch the surface of his potential.
Now or never for Watson
Now, with a new head coach and front office, it’s make-or-break time for Watson, and how his situation plays out will have a huge impact on the rest of the Nikola Jokic era in Denver. The team is deep, but they clearly need some youthful exuberance and athleticism that not many players on the roster outside of Watson can provide.
At the same time, they have a plethora of options now, and they don’t have time for developmental projects and growing pains in the heart of Jokic’s prime. The goal is to win now, and if Watson isn’t helping the team reach that goal, he’s not going to play. It’s as simple as that.
Watson extension a fork in the road for Nuggets
Complicating matters even further is that Watson is eligible for a rookie extension this fall. Although it was a different regime, Denver has been known for giving out some atrocious extensions in recent years, and will want to tread cautiously. The last thing they can afford is another wasted, long-term contract on the end of their bench for years to come.
On the other hand, if they don’t extend him and he has a great season, they risk losing him or being forced to overpay. They’re already going to have to pony up to keep Christian Braun this fall with a Jokic supermax coming next summer. If they mess up the Watson deal, they are going to pay for it one way or another.
However this plays out, it’s going to have a massive impact on the rest of this era. If it goes well, the Nuggets will have a dynamic Swiss Army Knife who can extend the team’s championship window. But if it goes poorly, they’ll be constantly reshuffling on the fly, hoping to strike gold with veterans turning over the back of the roster. It’s clear which path is preferred, but it’s all in Watson’s hands.