Major Peyton Watson free agency twist emerges

The future of guard-forward Peyton Watson with the Denver Nuggets is still up in the air. Denver has already extended a qualifying offer worth  $6.53 million to Watson, who is a restricted free agent, and is said to be willing to match any offer that another team would offer the former UCLA Bruins star.

However, Sam Amick of The Athletic reported on Sunday that the Nuggets are also open to the idea of a sign-and-trade involving Watson.

Noting that the Nuggets and Watson’s camp are still “apart in negotiations for a new contract,” Amick compared Watson’s potential sign-and-trade to another team with the recent move the Utah Jazz did with big man Walker Kessler, who was inked to a new deal before getting sent to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Watson is coming off his best year yet in his NBA career, and he seems to feel he’s worthy of a much bigger contract than what the Nuggets have on the table for him. At the same time, Amick is unsure whether there is ample trade interest from other teams in Watson, who will turn 24 years old in September.

Selected by the Nuggets 30th overall in the first round of the 2022 NBA Draft, Watson had an expanded role with Denver in the 2025-26 season, as he averaged career-highs of 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists, while shooting 49.1% from the floor and 41.1% from behind the arc through 54 games, including 40 starts.