Nuggets' Peyton Watson Reveals Mindset After Career-High 32 Points

The young Denver Nuggets wing had a career-best performance against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Oct 27, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Peyton Watson (8) answers questions during an interview after the game with the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. | Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

The Denver Nuggets pulled out a 125-118 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night, but it was not as easy as many would have expected. Despite the Pelicans winning just two of their first 15 games, they gave the Nuggets a good fight, and it took a career performance from one of Denver's role players to save them from an upset loss.

Nuggets wing Peyton Watson has been filling in for the injured Christian Braun in Denver's starting lineup, and he had a career-best game on Wednesday.

In the win, Watson dropped 32 points and 12 rebounds on 13-19 shooting from the field and 5-9 from three-point range, which are all new career-high marks. After the game, Watson revealed what his mindset was that led to his 32-point outburst.

"Just continuing to be aggressive. I knew that since we had two of our five starters not there, I knew that there was gonna be a need for me to increase my offensive load a little bit," Watson said. "I didn't have any idea that I was gonna have 30, but a lot of nights you just got out there and try to contribute to a win. That was my mindset tonight, and it worked out for us."

Of course, nobody would have expected Watson to go for 32 on Wednesday night, as he has only scored 20+ points two other times in his career. However, he stepped up when the Nuggets needed him to and helped contribute to a much-needed win while Christian Braun and Aaron Gordon were sidelined.

Peyton Watson's contract season

Nov 19, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Peyton Watson (8) drives to the basket against New Orleans Pelicans forward Trey Murphy III (25) during the first half at Smoothie King Center. | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

After the Nuggets opted not to give Watson a contract extension, the 2025-26 season started to mean that much more for the 23-year-old wing.

Watson is set to hit restricted free agency next summer, and with his defensive versatility alone, will certainly garner some interest across the league. Now, however, there is proof that he can be a viable contributor on offense as well, which will only help his case on the market. Of course, him raising his price tag is not ideal for the Nuggets, but securing his future in this league is far more important for everyone.

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