Three Nuggets Who Need to Step Up Without Peyton Watson

The Denver Nuggets got hit with some brutal injury news earlier this week surrounding breakout forward Peyton Watson, who will be out for at least the next four weeks with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, and thus adding to the injury misfortune this team has dealt with all season long.

Injury Update: Peyton Watson sustained a Right Hamstring Strain on Wednesday night at the New York Knicks. He will be re-evaluated in four weeks. pic.twitter.com/Y9Vw8g4mt0
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) February 6, 2026

But as the Nuggets have done through those injury troubles all year, they've been able to adapt, adjust, and lean on other players to pick up the slack left by their multiple absences, still leaving them ranked third in the Western Conference.

Without Watson, the plan will be no different, but will require a few key names to step up in the rotation to keep the Nuggets moving in a positive direction over the coming weeks.

Let's take a look at three critical names the Nuggets will need to lean on for the next four weeks or so while Watson recovers from his hamstring injury:

Spencer Jones

The Denver Nuggets had just converted Spencer Jones to his long-awaited traditional contract from his previous two-way deal, now cementing his spot on the team's roster for the rest of the season and any playoff run to follow. But now, his importance in the rotation has just gotten even more important for the next few weeks.

Jones will likely continue to start in the Nuggets' frontcourt for the coming weeks in large part to provide a bit of upside on the defensive end as he's done all season. But now without another top wing defender in Watson, his importance on that side of the ball as a switchable and versatile piece immediately becomes heightened.

Expect to see a lot of Jones in the Nuggets' lineup for the month of February, as Denver is bound to get good use out of his newly signed deal for the rest of the season.

Christian Braun

Upon returning from his lingering ankle injury, which has plagued his availability dating back to November, Christian Braun has yet to find himself back to form from his previous breakout year three campaign. On the season, he's averaging 9.1 points on 44.7% shooting from the field, seemingly still working his way back to full speed from an extended time out.

But now, the expectations for Braun and his on-court production to turn around will grow now with Watson out of the picture.

With Watson, Cameron Johnson, and Aaron Gordon all missing extended time, Braun immediately becomes the Nuggets' third scoring option behind Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. It's been a slow start to the year, but there's a good opportunity for the taking of landing higher shot volume and a chance to get his efficiency to turn around before getting deep into playoff action later this year.

If the struggles continue for Braun, though, it'll be even harder for the Nuggets to overcome their short-handed lineup, making him perhaps the most important piece to keep an eye on across the next few weeks.

Julian Strawther

The Nuggets depth on the wing has now become even slimmer, which means for Julian Strawther, he's more than likely to get even more playing time than he's been tasked with as of late.

In the first half of the season, Strawther was in and out of the lineup due to either injury or simply the coach's decision. Yet, from game 42 of the Nuggets' season onwards, he's averaged over 18 minutes a game, playing in all but two contests, averaging 9.1 points on 54.9/43.5/90.0 splits.

With that strong slate of recent games combined with the implications of Watson's newest injury, Strawther seems guaranteed to get even more playing time moving forward, and might even find himself plugging in as a starter for a few games while down three of their top forwards are sidelined.

Spencer Jones

Christian Braun

Julian Strawther

More Denver Nuggets Content