With all of the new additions to the Nuggets’ roster this offseason, it’s hard to remember the guys from the bench who are returning from last season, like Peyton Watson. It’s easy to see a world where Watson gets lost in the shuffle and is fighting to stay in the rotation, but it’s also easy to see a world where he’s the key to the bench units, if he can just make his three-pointers.
Shooting is absolutely the swing skill for Watson this season. He has already proven to be a great defender and his length and athleticism allows him to guard on the perimeter and protect the rim in a way that nobody else on the roster can do.
P-Wat also brings great energy to the team and is able to help the Nuggets get out in transition and play free-flowing, up-and-down basketball. The issue for Watson has almost entirely been his shooting. He’s the perfect ideal to be an outstanding three-and-D NBA player, but the three hasn’t quite caught up to the rest of his game yet.
In the 2023-24 season, which was the first year when Watson was part of the rotation, he shot a paltry 29% from three on 1.9 attempts per game. Last season, he upped that to a respectable 35%, but that was still only on 2 attempts per game.
NBA defenses aren’t respecting Watson, almost daring him to shoot, and he’s only obliging when he is essentially wide open, and still not shooting a very good percentage. The volume and percentage both need to improve, and if they do, Peyton can become a real weapon for the Nuggets this season.
Watson working to improve shot this offseason
According to Adam Mares of DNVR Sports, Watson has been working on his shot with former NBA marksman Dorell Wright. Wright played in the league for 11 seasons and was one of the players who revolutionized the “3 & D” role during an era when three point attempts were revolutionzing the game.
He competed in the three-point contest in 2011, and when he left the Warriors in 2012, he held the franchise records for threes made in a game and in a season. But it took Wright seven seasons to unlock his role. He was a low-volume shooter in Miami and played sparingly, barely contributing.
But when he went to Golden State, he started firing up threes like crazy and became one of the league’s most improved players. This is almost the exact trajectory Nuggets fans want to see from Watson, so hopefully Wright can help make it happen.
Watson needs to improve his form and his mechanics to release more quickly and consistently. Hopefully, these workouts will pay off. If he comes into the season with confidence, he should have plenty of opportunities. I’d love to see him closer to five attempts per game at 38% or above.
If he can do that, he’ll be one of the most improved players in the NBA, he’ll be a demon for the Nuggets, and he’ll make it hard for David Adelman to keep him off the floor.