Peyton Watson has officially said goodbye to the Denver Nuggets after four seasons with the franchise, posting an emotional message to Nuggets Nation on Tuesday. The 23-year-old forward leaves Denver after signing a four-year, $88 million contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers in a five-team sign-and-trade completed August 19.
“Nuggets Nation and the city of Denver, Thank you for having me for the first four years of my career,” Watson wrote on Instagram. “As a young NBA player, who was a bit naive and hadn’t seen much of the real world, you guys took care of me better than I could have ever imagined.”
Watson thanked Nuggets owner Josh Kroenke and former general manager Calvin Booth, who selected him 30th overall out of UCLA in the 2022 NBA Draft. He also recognized head coach Michael Malone, assistant coach David Adelman, his teammates and several veterans, specifically referring to Aaron Gordon as his “big brother” and thanking Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray for their help on and off the court.
The farewell follows Watson’s most productive NBA season. He averaged 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.9 steals and 1.1 blocks in 54 games during the 2025-26 campaign while shooting 49.1% from the field and 41.1% from three-point range.
Watson’s role expanded significantly over his four seasons in Denver. He went from averaging 3.3 points in 8.1 minutes across 23 games as a rookie to starting 40 of his 54 appearances in 2025-26 while playing 29.6 minutes per game.
Across 225 career games with the Nuggets, Watson averaged 8.7 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.6 steals and 1.1 blocks while shooting 47.9% from the field and 36.1% from three-point range.
His departure came after contract negotiations between Watson and Denver stalled during restricted free agency. The Nuggets were reportedly willing to offer $17.5 million annually, while Watson ultimately agreed to a contract with Cleveland worth $88 million over four years, including a player option in the final season and a 7.5% trade kicker.
Denver chose not to match the offer and instead received an unprotected 2031 first-round pick, a 2032 second-round pick and Julian Reese in the five-team transaction. The Nuggets entered the offseason after finishing 54-28, third in the Western Conference, before losing to Minnesota 4-2 in the first round of the playoffs.
Watson will now join a Cleveland team that finished 52-30 and reached the Eastern Conference finals in 2026. His next chapter will come alongside Donovan Mitchell and James Harden, while Denver moves forward with the draft assets acquired for a player who developed into a key part of its rotation.
“I will miss seeing you all at Ball Arena,” Watson wrote. “Playing in front of you has been a dream come true. I’ll see you all soon.”
