Peyton Watson Had Surpised Reaction to Nuggets' Historic Start

The Denver Nuggets, through the first 23 games of the 2025-26 NBA season, have gotten off to a surprisingly historic start.

Now with a 17-6 overall record following their latest road win vs. the Charlotte Hornets, this year's Nuggets team has found themselves putting together their best start in franchise history since the NBA-ABA merger. They've overcome their defensive and injury woes thanks to a league-best offense and the star talent of Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, now placing Denver in some impressive history.

But even with a strong start in the books, that's led Denver near the top of the Western Conference. Nuggets wing Peyton Watson ended up caught a little off-guard after hearing the team's record-setting win-loss mark through the first month and a half.

"Y'all heard that? You hear that Jok'? Best start in franchise history? I thought we were mid, honestly," Watson said after the Nuggets' 17th win of the season. I though there were some things we need to get better at, myself included."

Peyton Watson Sees Nuggets as "Mid" Despite Historic Start

Watson, who's emerged as a consistent starter amid the injuries to Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun, has helped in beng a key part of that early season success as a much-needed fill-in, especially when providing some welcomed firepower on the defensive side of the ball.

In the 23 games he's played, Watson's averaged a career-best 10.3 points a night, pairing with 49.2% shooting from the field and an improved 37.5% from three. He's also averaging 5.1 boards and 1.7 assists.

Combine that with being one of the best and most versatile wing defenders Denver has to throw out onto the floor right now by averaging nearly a steal and a block per game, and he's found his way into being a critical component of this deep Nuggets rotation, perhaps even to a bigger payday once he hits restricted free agency later this offseason.

Dec 5, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Peyton Watson (8) dunks before a game against the Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

But, even with a start of historic proportions, Watson sees a few routes to the Nuggets improving. And especially for a team with championship aspirations, there's still a ton of room for growth of just how high Denver's ceiling could end up being.

That includes on Watson's behalf, even while piecing together the best start of his career as well.

"It's a great group of guys. We're super serious about our approach to the game, and I think that shows when we go out there on the court," Watson continued. "Obviously, there's some things we need to clean up, this is a good start for us, and we look to get better from here."

For Denver, the goal isn't to set any regular season wins record; it's to make some noise for a deep postseason run. But if able to capitalize on a historic 82-game slate in the process, that's certainly an added bonus.

Peyton Watson Sees Nuggets as "Mid" Despite Historic Start

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