Former Bruin Peyton Watson Getting Better Every Year

If it were up to Peyton Watson, he would've gone straight to the NBA.

Three years later, it turns out he might’ve been right.

As a consensus five-star recruit, with the length and wingspan to be an exceptional professional, colleges around the country were gushing over him.

But Watson was adamant about one thing.

He wanted to be one-and-done.

The whole “one-and-done” conversation is always a little taboo. It gets complicated when players take that route just to get drafted, only to wind up as afterthoughts — or worse, out of the league after a single contract.

Some examples? Anthony Bennett, Daniel Orton, Noah Vonleh, Marquese Chriss.

Of course, some players go one year and become legitimate NBA stars — but the talent usually has to be significantly obvious before making such a drastic career decision.

Watson was already at a disadvantage. Despite the highly regarded high school resume, his senior season was interrupted by COVID-19, and he showed up to UCLA’s training camp out of shape.

The Bruins at the time were a veteran-laden group fresh off a Final Four run. So getting real minutes was going to be a battle.

If you look at the stats, you can agree it wasn’t an ideal season for him. Coming off the bench isn’t a bad thing, but shooting 32% from the field and 22% from three doesn’t exactly scream lottery pick.

But the one thing that kept him on the floor was his defense. And in typical Mick Cronin fashion, he gave Watson the opportunity to develop into one of the Bruins’ most reliable perimeter defenders.

UCLA went 27–8 and finished 11th in the nation, generating a few future pros in Jaime Jaquez, Johnny Juzang, and Jaylen Clark.

And even with the sub-par numbers, Watson was still a first-round draft pick.

The Oklahoma City Thunder took him 30th overall with the final pick of the first round, but immediately flipped him to the Denver Nuggets for JaMychal Green, a 2027 first-rounder, and a pair of second-rounders.

Denver clearly wanted him — they saw the vision — but he had “project” written all over him.

With lateral quickness, a high defensive IQ, and one of the longest wingspans in the draft, the upside was there.

As expected, his rookie year was split between the G-League and the NBA. But the NBA was kind to him.

Whatever time he saw on the floor, he made the most of it — particularly by cleaning up the shooting numbers that haunted him in college.

He also got to learn from the best. Watson was part of the Nuggets’ 2023 title team, earning a ring as a rookie. He only played five games in that playoff run, but being in the locker room of a championship team gave him a front-row seat to winning basketball.

Watson’s game took off after that.

He wasn’t a full-time starter, but he saw playing time in every game but two in Year 2, and his defense quickly won fans over. Thanks to his 7-foot wingspan, he became one of the sneakier shot disruptors in the league — earning him the nickname “Swatson.”

From his rookie season on, his numbers have only ascended. By Year 3, Watson solidified his spot in the rotation, starting 18 games and averaging 24 minutes a night. He upped his block rate to 1.4 per game, including five games with four blocks.

In hindsight, would it have helped to stay at UCLA for another year? Maybe.

But you can only play the should’ve, would’ve, could’ve game for so long.

What matters is what he’s doing now. And what he’s doing now is solidifying himself as a legitimate NBA player — at just 22 years old.

Watson might not be a star, but he’s carving out a meaningful role. And in today’s NBA, that matters more than ever.