Watson took another jump forward in his third season in the league, posting several career-high numbers while playing a meaningful role off the bench. He averaged 8.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.4 blocks and 0.7 steals across 24.4 minutes per game in 68 regular-season outings. The 23-year-old also shot 47.7 percent from the field and 35.3 percent from three-point range. However, Watson shot just 69.3 percent from the charity stripe and has struggled with efficiency from the free-throw line during his NBA career. He should continue to operate as the primary backup to Aaron Gordon in the 2025-26 campaign, though Denver strengthened its second unit this offseason by adding Tim Hardaway, Bruce Brown and Jonas Valanciunas. Watson's career-best year in 2024-25 was good for a 175th-place finish in eight-category leagues, but Denver remains a contending team and has bolstered its bench, meaning the UCLA product may not see the same production he saw last season. He has shown potential and should garner interest in the late rounds of fantasy drafts, especially in deeper leagues. However, his role isn't expected to increase in the final year of his rookie deal, making him a solid addition slightly before pick 200 in drafts. Read Past Outlooks
$Signed a two-year, $4.5 million contract with the Nuggets in July of 2022. Nuggets exercised $2.41 million team option for 2024-25 in October of 2023. Nuggets exercised $4.36 million team option for 2025-26 in October of 2024.
Personal Bio/PreCareer Summary
Watson was born on Sep. 11, 2002, in Beverly Hills, California. He attended Long Beach Polytechnic High School in Long Beach, California, joining the varsity team as a freshman. He would gain a key role with the team as a junior, where he averaged 23.2 points and 8.0 per game, earning Moore League MVP honors. Watson was named to the rosters for the McDonald's All-American, Jordan Brand Classic and Nike Hoop Summit. He was a consensus five-star recruit, one of the top small forwards and the highest-ranked player from California in the 2021 recruiting class. On July 27, 2020, he committed to playing college basketball for UCLA over offers from Arizona, Gonzaga, Michigan, Oregon and Washington. As a freshman, he was joining an experienced UCLA group with all five starters returning after advancing to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament. As a result, his playing time was sporadic and his role was very reduced compared to high school. However, he did receive an honorable mention for the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team, averaging 3.3 points and 2.9 rebounds in 12.6 minutes per game. After the season, Watson declared for the 2022 NBA draft, forgoing his remaining college eligibility. He was selected by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the 2022 NBA draft with the 30th overall pick. He was then traded to the Denver Nuggets along with two future second-round picks for JaMychal Green and a 2027 protected first-round draft pick.
Chips in 15 points in loss
FDenver Nuggets
December 1, 2025
Watson ended Monday's 131-121 loss to the Mavericks with 15 points (7-14 FG, 1-4 3Pt), five rebounds, three assists and three blocks in 35 minutes.
ANALYSIS While he struggled from beyond the arc, Watson still finished as Denver's third-leading scorer. The 23-year-old forward has scored in double figures in five straight games, grabbing at least five boards in each of them. He also tied his season-high mark in blocks Monday. Watson has been a mainstay in the starting lineup of late and should remain in the first unit with Aaron Gordon (hamstring) and Christian Braun (ankle) sidelined.
2024 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Starting/Off Bench
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2024 NBA Per Game Split Stats - Days Rest
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2025
2024
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Stat Review
How does Peyton Watson compare to other players?
This section compares his stats with all players from the previous three seasons (minimum 200 minutes played)*. The bar represents the player's percentile rank. For example, if the bar is halfway across, then the player falls into the 50th percentile for that stat and it would be considered average.
True Shooting %
An advanced statistic that measures a player's efficiency at shooting the ball that takes field goal percentage, free throw percentage, and three point percentage into account.
Effective Field Goal %
A statistic that adjusts field goal percentage to account for the fact that three-point field goals count for three points while field goals only count for two points.
3-Point Attempt Rate
Percentage of field goal attempts from three point range.
Free Throw Rate
Number of free throw attempts per field goal attempt.
Offensive Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available offensive rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Defensive Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available defensive rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Total Rebound %
An estimate of the percentage of available rebounds a player grabbed while they were on the floor.
Assist %
An estimate of the percentage of teammate field goals a player assisted while they were on the floor.
Steal %
An estimate of the percentage of opponent possessions that end with a steal by the player while they were on the floor.
Block %
An estimate of the percentage of opponent two-point field goal attempts blocked by the player while they were on the floor.
Turnover %
An estimate of turnovers committed per 100 plays.
Usage %
An estimate of the percentage of team plays used by a player while they were on the floor.
Fantasy Points Per Game
NBA Fantasy Points Per Game.
Fantasy Points Per Minute
NBA Fantasy Points Per Minute.
True Shooting %
59.4%
Effective Field Goal %
56.1%
3-Point Attempt Rate
36.0%
Free Throw Rate
25.0%
Offensive Rebound %
5.2%
Defensive Rebound %
15.0%
Total Rebound %
10.4%
Assist %
8.0%
Steal %
1.5%
Block %
4.1%
Turnover %
9.8%
Usage %
15.4%
Fantasy Points Per Game
24.3
Fantasy Points Per Minute
0.9
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Total
Per Game
Per 36
NBA Historical Fantasy Stats
How are these ratings calculated?
Our historical fantasy ratings are standard scores calculated using 8-Category settings with 12 teams and 13 players per team.
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NBA Per Game Historical Fantasy Stats
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NBA Per 36 Historical Fantasy Stats
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Historical ADP
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Nuggets Depth Chart
Our full team depth charts are reserved for RotoWire subscribers.
Average Fantasy Points are determined when Peyton Watson was active vs. non-active during the season. Click here to view average fantasy points for a different time period.
Minutes
FanDuel
DraftKings
Yahoo
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Peyton Watson See More
RotoWire's Jeff Edgerton provides his analysis for Wednesday's FanDuel NBA DFS slate, highlighting chalk plays, mid-range options and bargain-bin value.
Maximize Week 7 in NBA Fantasy. RotoWire's Adam King highlights sleepers on the rise (Sheppard, Watson) and points out which players are worth sitting.
2024 Fantasy Outlook
Entering his third season in the league, Watson has yet to establish himself as a consistent producer in fantasy or reality. Although he suited up for 80 games last year, he finished outside the top 250 in nine-category leagues, averaging 6.7 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.1 blocks and 0.6 three-pointers in 18.6 minutes per game. He flashed rim protection upside at stages throughout the season, at one point blocking 13 shots across a span of three games. Sadly, the same cannot be said for his offensive output. He lacks a reliable shot, be it from mid-range or the perimeter, while also shooting just 65.1 percent from the stripe over the course of his career. Despite losing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to the Magic this offseason, the Nuggets remain in win-now mode, meaning opportunities for Watson could still be sporadic. He is someone to keep an eye on, just in case he can take some strides forward on the offensive end of the floor. However, Watson is not worth drafting outside of deeper formats.
More Fantasy News
Impressive run continues
FDenver Nuggets
November 24, 2025
Watson supplied 27 points (11-22 FG, 5-12 3Pt), five rebounds, three assists, one block and one steal across 33 minutes during Monday's 125-115 win over Memphis.
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Flirts with double-double
FDenver Nuggets
November 21, 2025
Watson totaled nine points (3-5 FG, 3-4 FT), 10 rebounds, three assists, one block and one steal across 34 minutes during Friday's 112-109 victory over the Rockets.
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Posts career highs in win
FDenver Nuggets
November 19, 2025
Watson recorded 32 points (13-19 FG, 5-9 3Pt, 1-1 FT), 12 rebounds, three assists and one block across 34 minutes in Wednesday's 125-118 win over the Pelicans.
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Logs three blocks in loss
FDenver Nuggets
November 18, 2025
Watson totaled five points (2-4 FG, 1-1 3Pt), three rebounds, one assist, three blocks and one steal in 34 minutes during Monday's 130-127 loss to the Bulls.
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Latest Fantasy Rumors
Could thrive as three-and-D player
FDenver Nuggets
November 26, 2025
Watson's best chance to earn a large contract in the summer of 2026 would be if he thrives as a three-and-D specialist, according to Bennett Durando of The Denver Post.
ANALYSIS Watson has been thriving in a starting role of late, with Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun out with hamstring and ankle injuries, respectively. He has scored at least 15 points in three of his last four games, averaging 20.8 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.3 three-pointers and 1.3 combined steals-plus-blocks during that span. Watson has proven he can hit threes and defend at a high level. If he does that consistently throughout the rest of the 2025-26 campaign, he'd probably receive a lot of interest as a restricted free agent.