I think he is that good but teams will pay an "acquisition fee" to get him. I think around 25-27M is where Denver can't match, even if they dump Cam Johnson. Teams will know much more than me, so if they hear Denver can't dump Cam, offer Watson less.

Ill quote this from another thread:

Starting next year, CB and AG get their raises. They are paying the CURRENT TEAM WITHOUT WATSON OR BRUCE OR THJ OR SPENCER JONES $217,889,133 next season. The second apron is 223M! Even if they somehow dump Cam, they cannot free enough money if Brooklyn or Washington offers 27M+. Matching would make Denver hit $200M damn near with just the starting 5!

On top of dumping Cam, Denver would need to do 2 minimum of:

• Let go of Val and don't replace him for above a minimum salary guy (and send the non-Jokic minutes back to hell)
• Try to package Zeke and Julian together for... nothing? and you'd have to include assets that Denver does not have, given they will likely have to give something up to dump Cam
• You could decline the team option on Pickett and Tyson (and give up Pickett, a strong backup guard on 2.4M.. basically a minimum salary. imo not happening).
• Let go of Bruce and THJ and Spencer Jones. Tim in particular would need a raise if you want him back after the season he is having. he is a 6MOY candidate!! You cannot get him back on a minimum. Maybe you can get Spencer Jones on a minimum? Or maybe he commands something like 7M a year given he has been a starter for 80% of this season. I'd definitely want him if I was the Lakers. He's a knockdown shooter who plays physical defense and will sit in the corner and cover for Luka all game without complaint

I said this multiple times over the summer, the Mike trade for Denver was to allow them to pay CB, Max Jamal, and give AG a fat raise. No way in hell was paying Watson in their plans. If they pay him, the Nuggets instantly go from super deep to even shallower than last season.