The Cleveland Cavaliers are shaking things up on the wing.
Cleveland is acquiring Peyton Watson from the Nuggets in a three-team trade that will send Max Strus to the Los Angeles Clippers, and an unprotected 2031 Cavaliers first-round pick and a 2032 Sacramento Kings second-round pick to Denver, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.
The Cavaliers will also send Tre Mann, a 2027 second-round pick from the Clippers and cash to the Washington Wizards for Cam Whitmore.
Washington will send Julian Reese to the Nuggets, who will waive him from his two-way contract.
Watson, a restricted free agent, will sign a new four-year, $88-million contract with Cleveland. The deal will include a player option and a trade kicker.
The 23-year-old averaged 14.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists over 54 games for Denver last season while shooting 49.1 per cent from the floor and 41.1 per cent from three.
Watson was a member of the Nuggets' 2022-23 NBA championship-winning team as a rookie and slowly saw his role increase year over year with Denver, averaging a career-best 29.6 minutes per game last season.
Strus will head to the Clippers after spending the last three seasons with Cleveland. The seven-year NBA veteran missed the majority of the 2025–26 campaign with a foot fracture, appearing in just 12 regular-season games.
In those 12 contests, he shot 40.2 per cent from three for Cleveland and averaged 11.2 points per game. Although he missed much of the regular season, Strus was a key cog in the Cavaliers' run to the Eastern Conference Finals, averaging 26.7 minutes over 18 games.
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