Trust me, it isn’t time to give up on Watson. He has immense defensive versatility. He has high potential as a wing stopper. He plays the perfect role for the modern NBA. He is a sneaky good athlete, and has solid offensive instincts. He was never expected to be a good fit on UCLA’s team. He would benefit from another year of college, but he will find an NBA job if he takes that route. His shooting numbers are hard to look at, but he isn’t taking high percentage shots. He really just has not had the same opportunity that other top prospects have had. It will take him a bit to get his scoring figured out, but his defense is too tantalizing to pass up. I could totally see him slipping into a Herb Jones type of role on a rebuilding team.

Comparison: Herb Jones

Projected Draft Range: 30-Undrafted

Best Team Fits: Memphis, Minnesota, Milwaukee

Height 6'8

Weight 200 lbs

Wingspan 7'1

DOB 9/11/02 (Draft Age: 19)

Pre-Draft Team UCLA Bruins

Offense

• Developing shooting mechanics. Good looking high release.

• Good offensive rebounder.

• Has not shot well so far, quite raw at this stage offensively.

• Handles need major work still.

Defense

• Has the physical tools to be a good defender, but he still needs work on close out angles and defensive IQ.

• Rebounds well.

• How well does he defend in space against smaller matchups will determine a lot of his defensive potential.

Swing Factors

Role

• LOW:

• HIGH:

Player analysis

Peyton Watson is one of my favorite players in the draft, he had many termoiles and tribulations in his volatile freshman season at UCLA where he catapulted from a top ten talent to a mid to late second round pick. Watson was horrible on offense and posted efficiency that makes you want to puke but also doesn’t show the full story. He played very limited and inconsistent minutes for a college team which wanted nothing to do with him after Johnny Juzang surprisingly went back to school for last season. Peyton was in a bad situation but certainly didn’t capitalize on what he had, he went three weeks without scoring a single point in the middle of the season. It’s clear that he can’t really score but I would say his size and slashing makes him better than what his offense looks like on paper. Watson was a positive on defense last year which really is what made him salvageable and even intriguing, he stays alert on and off the ball which is rare for a young player. He has great size for a forward/wing in terms of length and strength with many seeing him as a good athlete with upside to get better. He racked up a surprising amount of steals and blocks despite the off and on minutes, he recorded a positive impact when on the court basically through sheer defensive ability because his offense was so bad. Watson has a really high ceiling in my eyes because he has the tools of a quality offensive player while being a good defender who can make an impact immediately, Peyton’s clear tenacity and desire makes me believe that he will capitalize on his talent that was widely and highly regarded just a year ago in highschool.

Projection

Draft range: [ 34 - undrafted ]

Comp: [ Herb Jones (horrible offense) ]

Strengths: Defensive Potential Weaknesses: Shot Creation and Shooting

High Side Comp: Jaden McDaniels/Solomon Hill Low Side Comp: Wenyen Gabriel/Jarell Martin

Ideal Fit: Developmental Wing with Defensive Upside

Draft Range: 25-58

Result: 30- DEN

Athleticism: 6/10 Size: 4/5 Defense: 7/10 Strength: 3/5 Quickness: 6/10 Creation: 2/5 Jumpshot: 3/10 Finishing: 2/5 NBA Ready: 1/5 Ball Handling: 4/10 Passing: 3/10 Intangibles: 2/5 Potential: 7/10 TOTAL: 50= Mid Second