The Denver Nuggets are reportedly facing stiff competition in their bid to bring back Peyton Watson.
The Los Angeles Clippers have interest in the restricted free agent, but it's unclear whether their pursuit would be affected by the pending Kawhi Leonard trade with the Toronto Raptors, sources told ESPN's Dave McMenamin.
The Atlanta Hawks, Milwaukee Bucks, and Cleveland Cavaliers are also "serious candidates" to acquire Watson, McMenamin adds.
The Nuggets are reportedly open to a sign-and-trade if they can't retain Watson, and they would apparently seek an impact player and one future first-round pick in such a scenario.
Watson is among the top players remaining on the market. The 23-year-old is coming off a breakthrough campaign in which he averaged a career-high 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.1 blocks across 54 appearances, including 40 starts. His 1.9% block percentage ranked in the 99th percentile among wing players, per Cleaning the Glass.
Last season, Denver scored 5.4 more points per 100 possessions when Watson was on the floor. However, a lingering hamstring injury kept him sidelined for a significant part of the regular season as well as the entire postseason.
