Denver Gazette beat writer Vinny Benedetto takes you around the NBA and inside the Nuggets locker room:<\/p>\n
NBA Insider<\/strong><\/p>\n The upcoming season is a big one for Peyton Watson, and the forward knows what needs to happen for his fourth season to be his best.<\/p>\n \u201cJust becoming a more consistent shooter has already done a lot for me and opened things up,\u201d Watson said on a recent appearance on The Young Man and the Three podcast hosted by new teammate Cam Johnson and host Tommy Alter. \u201cI remember earlier in my career, like last year, when I really started playing and even beginning this year, coming off injury in the preseason, teams were sagging off of me. For me, honestly, that was not something that affected me, because sometimes when you\u2019re wide open, it\u2019s like \u2018is this the ethical shot to take?\u2019 if they\u2019re always leaving me wide open, but my teammates and my coaches encouraged me to shoot them and rep them out.\u201d<\/p>\n Watson and Christian Braun become eligible to sign contract extensions in July. More than a month later, the duo is heading into next season without extensions. If there\u2019s not an extension by next summer, they will be restricted free agents. Watson has flashed defensive potential in recent seasons, but a leap offensively could make him a key piece to Denver\u2019s future. He said he\u2019s been working on being \u201cnerdy\u201d about mastering the mechanics of his shot with Dorrell Wright. That\u2019s something Johnson appreciated.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of it is habits,\u201d Johnson, a 39.2% 3-point shooter said.<\/p>\n \u201cI like to have an approach that tries to transfer over to the game, because the mental pressures of shooting when you\u2019re just shooting catch and shoots, you\u2019re able to catch a rhythm, there\u2019s no defense, and there\u2019s really no punishment for missing. In a game, you know the deflating feeling of missing a wide-open 3. You know the feeling of being 0 for 4 or 0 for 5. It affects the next shot as much as we want to say it doesn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n Johnson\u2019s 22-year-old teammate understood that sentiment. After shooting 43% from deep on limited attempts as a rookie, Watson\u2019s 3-point percentage dropped to 29.6% in Year 2. The shot bounced back 35.3.% last season when Watson took a career-high two 3s per game.<\/p>\n \u201cContinuing to sharpen that part of my game and shoot well all around the arc, learning some things from yourself and Tim (Hardaway Jr.),\u201d Watson said. \u201cI shot with Tim this morning. It\u2019s just the consistency in every single shot and things that I\u2019m picking up on that\u2019s making me a better shooter, making me more of a threat. I think that\u2019s something that\u2019s brought me more success.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Friday Faceoff: Where are Nuggets in NBA power rankings after robust offseason?<\/a><\/p>\n What I\u2019m Thinking<\/strong><\/p>\n The NBA is set to release the regular-season schedule later this week, and national-television assignments should reflect the disparity between the Eastern and Western Conferences.<\/p>\n Denver won\u2019t have as many prime assignments as the Lakers, Warriors or Thunder, but the offseason changes should have the Nuggets comfortably in the second tier. Injuries to Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton should decrease the number of national broadcasts the Celtics and Pacers, respectively, receive.<\/p>\n Oklahoma City and Denver being located in the central and mountain time zones should allow the NBA to have more doubleheaders featuring exclusively Western Conference teams.<\/p>\n If the NBA thinks the best course of action is to stick with the formula with an Eastern Conference matchup to start the doubleheader and a Western Conference game on the back end, Adam Silver and company have lost the plot.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Denver Nuggets picked to host Christmas Day game<\/a><\/p>\n \n Your daily report on everything sports in Colorado – covering the Denver Broncos, Denver Nuggets, Colorado Avalanche, and columns from Woody Paige and Paul Klee.\n <\/p>\n Success! Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter.<\/p>\n What I\u2019m Following<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2022\u00a0Nikola Jokic looked ready for the season to start in a EuroBasket tune-up game against Greece. Jokic reportedly dropped 23 points, 19 rebounds and four assists against a Greek team that was without Giannis Antetokounmpo.<\/p>\n \u2022\u00a0Vlatko Cancar will not be representing Slovenia in this month\u2019s EuroBasket tournament. Cancar\u2019s new team, Olimpia Milano, wanted the forward to prioritize his health ahead of next season.<\/p>\n \u2022\u00a0Former Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony picked Allen Iverson, another former Nugget, and Dwyane Wade as his presenters for his introduction to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on Sept. 6.<\/p>\n \u2022\u00a0The Nuggets will be hosting the Timberwolves on Christmas, but they\u2019ll be watching opening night. Kevin Durant and his new Rockets teammates will be in Oklahoma City for the Thunder\u2019s banner night on Oct. 21. The NBC doubleheader will also feature the Warriors visiting the Lakers.<\/p>\n \u2022\u00a0The Celtics might have a rough season ahead, but Boston gave coach Joe Mazzulla some additional security in the form of a multi-year contract extension. Boston shed some salary this offseason after Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles tendon in the playoffs. The star forward expected to miss most if not all of next season.<\/p>\n \u2022\u00a0SuperMascot Rocky crashed the Savannah Bananas\u2019 takeover of Coors Field over the weekend.<\/p>\n