Is Peyton Watson Playing Tonight? (Injury Update, Betting Impact for Blazers vs. Nuggets)

Denver Nuggets wing Peyton Watson has not played since Feb. 4 due to a hamstring strain, but he is on track to return on Sunday against the Portland Trail Blazers.

Officially, Watson is listed as questionable on Denver's injury report, but ESPN's Shams Charania reported on Saturday that the former first-round pick is expected to return to the lineup on Sunday.

Denver's Peyton Watson is expected to return Sunday against the Portland Trail Blazers after missing 6+ weeks due to a hamstring strain, sources tell ESPN. Watson has had a breakout year for the Nuggets, averaging career highs of 14.9 points, 30.7 minutes and 4.9 rebounds to go…
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 21, 2026

That's a huge boost for the Nuggets, who are finally full healthy in the 2025-26 season. Watson, Nikola Jokic, Christian Braun, Cameron Johnson and Aaron Gordon have all missed significant stretches in the 2025-26 season, yet Denver is still the No. 5 seed in the West.

Oddsmakers at DraftKings have set the Nuggets as 8.5-point favorites at home in Watson's expected return to action. He's the only player on Denver's injury report with a questionable tag, as the rest of the team is available to play.

This season, Watson has come into his own as a key piece of the Denver rotation, averaging career-highs in points (14.9), rebounds (4.9) and assists (2.0) in the 2025-26 season. Watson's leap was a big reason why Denver was able to weather injuries to both Gordon and Braun earlier in the campaign.

The Nuggets are still three games out of the No. 3 seed in the West, but they have a four-game cushion on the No. 7-seeded Phoenix Suns. Denver's focus the rest of the season will be keeping its rotation on the floor, as it has enough talent to compete with anyone in the league.

Watson likely will be on a minutes restriction in his first game back, but he should have a solid runway to get back to form ahead of the playoffs. As of Sunday, Denver is fourth in the odds at DraftKings to win the NBA Finals (+800), sitting behind only the Oklahoma City Thunder, Boston Celtics and San Antonio Spurs.

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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