Peyton Watson speaks on his hamstring injury.
Watson had a breakout season that saw him average 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.1 assists while shooting 49% from the field and 41% from three. When Nikola Jokic was injured for a month, Watson stepped up his game, averaging 22.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game on 48% shooting from the field and 44% from three.
His season ended in disappointment when he suffered a hamstring injury, his second of the season, on April 1 and was unable to return for the playoffs. The Nuggets lost in six games to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Peyton Watson Speaks on His Injury
Before the April 1 injury that ended his season, Watson suffered a hamstring injury on February 4 against the New York Knicks that sidelined him until March 22. He returned for five games before a second hamstring injury on April 1 against the Utah Jazz.
Appearing on the Curious Mike podcast with Michael Porter Jr, Watson revealed that he felt rushed back from the first hamstring injury.
“Obviously, when I got injured in New York, it was just a sickening feeling because I was up to win Most Improved Player award and up for a lot of stuff. It really hurt. Two or three weeks into my rehab, I felt like they were ramping me back up too quickly, but at the same time, I know that I'm young, and I do heal pretty fast. Like two or three weeks into my hamstring rehab, like I was out there playing with the coaches and I just felt a little tweak. And I felt like that was kind of a minor setback that I didn't really want to accept. I remember feeling pressure to get back and get some games under my belt to warm up before the playoffs.”
Watson said that when he had his hamstring checked after the Knicks game, he was told it looked the same as it did after the Jazz game in February, when it was a grade 2 strain.
What Could’ve Been Done?
Had the Nuggets taken it slower with Watson, maybe he still would’ve been able to return at the end of the season to get some games in before the playoffs.
Suffering what equated to a grade 2 strain in April, the same injury that sidelined him for seven weeks in February, was always going to put his playoff future in question, and if it was that bad, everyone made the right call for him to sit out.
Going into the offseason, and wanting to cash in on his big season as a restricted free agent, Watson was always going to be cautious after returning from the initial hamstring injury.
Watson was reportedly looking for $25 million annually from the Nuggets, who were only offering around $17 million. He ended up getting $22 million from the Cavaliers.
