The Denver Nuggets and restricted free agent Peyton Watson remain at an impasse. Next to Jalen Duren and the Pistons, it is the biggest domino yet to fall in the NBA offseason. Watson is coming off of a breakthrough campaign in Denver, in which he averaged 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists on .491/.411/.730 splits.
Still 23 years old, the former 30th overall pick has a reported four-year, $70 million offer sheet on the table from Denver. But Watson clearly wants more, while Denver is hamstrung by the second apron after matching a separate RFA offer sheet for Spencer Jones. The only path out of Denver at this point is a sign-and-trade. That would require the Nuggets receiving enough asset value to willingly let an emergent, potential secondary star walk. These trade packages could get a deal across the finish line.
Nets trade package for Peyton Watson
For the purposes of this exercise, let's put Watson's next contract at four years and $100 million. That's still excellent value in the modern landscape, when max contracts can exceed $50 or $60 million annually. The Nets take on Watson — plus a couple flunked former first-round picks in Zeke Nnaji and Julian Strawther — in exchange for Terance Mann and their own former first-round pick in Noah Clowney. Denver also reacquires its 2032 first-round pick, which Brooklyn received in the Cam Johnson-Michael Porter Jr. swap.
For Brooklyn, this is a chance to really invest in Watson as a primary weapon in hopes that he can reach his two-way ceiling under Jordi Fernandez's leadership. It seems like Michael Porter Jr. may not last through next season in a Nets uniform, so Watson should step into a sizable role sooner than later. He can look to build on his flashes as a slasher and transition scorer, while creative passers like Egor Dëmin and Mikel Brown Jr. should help Watson get the ball in favorable spots on the floor.
This also helps balance out the roster a bit. Zeke Nnaji's contract has become dead weight in Denver, but he's a legitimate center, which Brooklyn has too few of. Strawther has struggled to impact the game defensively, but he's a knockdown shooter on the wing and should benefit from playing off of Julius Randle and Brooklyn's young guards, plus it feels a need if (or when) Porter exits.
For Denver, Terance Mann should find new life playing off of Nikola Jokić, as most perimeter role players do. Last season was a mild aberation for Mann, who is historically a proficient slasher and transition scorer in his own right, with real passing chops on the wing. Noah Clowney has not really delivered on the hype since arriving in Brooklyn, but he's a floor-spacing power forward who should also benefit from the Jokić factor. Toss in a couple first-round picks and mild cash savings, and Denver will be hard-pressed to say no.
Cavaliers trade package for Peyton Watson
This is a cleaner avenue for the Nuggets, basically offloading the Peyton Watson salary slot entirely in exchange for the Cavaliers' 2030 first-round pick and a couple future second-round picks from Memphis.
The Grizzlies absorb Max Strus' expiring contract into a traded player exception and add a solid role-playing wing on the cheap. Strus remains a phenomenal spot-up shooter who can rebound and defend well enough for his position. He figures to slot into a productive complementary role next to Cameron Boozer, Zach Edey and Memphis' new young core.
For Cleveland, it's the chance to remedy what has, to this point, been an entirely unproductive summer. The Cavs missed out on a third LeBron James union and were never serious suitors for Giannis Antetokounmpo or Jaylen Brown. Fresh off their first conference finals appearance of the Donovan Mitchell era, there's pressure for Cleveland to find an avenue to meaningful improvement.
Watson provides it. He can run the floor with Donovan Mitchell and benefit immensely from James Harden's setup skills in the halfcourt. Cleveland's wing rotation is dire at the moment, but Watson's rangy defense and strong play-finishing skills would provide a major boon. After trading Dennis Schöder to clear cap space, it's clear the Cavs are gearing up for some kind of swing. Watson is the ideal outcome.
Bucks trade package for Peyton Watson
Milwaukee won't be competitive for a while, but there's logic to paying a moderate sum to add Peyton Watson. If this signing hits, Watson could return his value threefold in a future trade. Or he can accelerate Milwaukee's timeline a bit, which is helpful since the Bucks don't own their first-round pick for the next couple years. From a pure stylistic standpoint, Watson's open-court athleticism and downhill scoring can help roughly paper over — emphasis on roughly — Giannis' departure.
The Bucks only give up Kyle Kuzma's expiring contract, an undersized shooting specialist in AJ Green, and Bogoljub Marković, a former second-round pick who is expected to debut this season. Rather than sacrifice draft capital, the Bucks take on bad money from a third team, the Bulls, absorbing Patrick Williams' $18 million AAV salary for this season and next.
Denver receives Portland's top-15 protected first-round pick in 2028 by way of Chicago, as the Bulls look to maximize their financial flexibility for next summer by dumping Williams' albatross contract. Green's high-volume shooting should land him a useful role next to Jokić, while Marković has made huge gains — both physically and skill-wise — in the last year. There's a chance the Serbian forward, who shares a home country with Jokić, becomes a sneaky important contributor sooner than later.
Add us as a preferred source on Google