The Denver Nuggets traveled to New Orleans to take on Zion Williamson and the Pelicans on Wednesday night. It turned into a breakout performance for Peyton Watson, who played the best game of his career while starting for the injured Christian Braun.

After a sloppy start in the first quarter, the second unit helped the Nuggets stabilize before Watson put his stamp on the game. It wasn’t pretty, and the Pelicans flirted with a late-game comeback, but the Nuggets eventually secured their 11th win of the season.

Final score: 125-118.

Turnovers put the Nuggets behind the 8-ball

Denver trotted out a makeshift starting lineup in New Orleans. Watson started in place of Braun, and Zeke Nnaji—yes, Zeke Nnaji—started in place of Aaron Gordon. With Williamson back from injury, David Adelman opted for size and to keep the core of his second unit together.

The Nuggets slipped and fell right out of the gate, turning it over 7 times in their first 7 minutes. Four of them belonged to Nikola Jokić. Predictably, the group looked chaotic and disjointed, but Jokić grew aggressive, Watson got going, and Denver settled in.

Jokić finished with another triple-double before the fourth quarter even started, although he flirted with a quadruple-double — and not the fun kind. He finished with nine turnovers. The Nuggets finished with 20 as a team. Jokić also fouled out late in the fourth quarter.

Spencer Jones changes the tone, Second Unit changes the game

In addition to the turnovers, the Nuggets got out to a dreadful start defensively. Spencer Jones checked in and changed the tone. He played suffocating defense, unafraid to draw a whistle, and the Nuggets inched their way back into the game. He was insatiable out there, working to disrupt everything from straight line drives to the inbound pass.

Adelman stacked his second unit, hoping Jones, Bruce Brown, Tim Hardaway Jr, and Jonas Valanciunas would dominate their minutes. That’s how it bore out.

Brown played a terrific game against his former team. He logged 12 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals in 27 minutes. The Nuggets cruised while he was on the floor. His +22 led all players.

Peyton Watson’s career night

Every role player looks better with consistent time alongside Jokić. Watson, the designated Braun replacement, led all scorers with 32 points. The Pelicans left him open, Jokić fed him a steady diet of good looks, and he feasted.

Watson got hot from deep, knocking down five threes, which helped him set a new career high in his first 20 minutes on the floor. He’d notched 25 points with 7:33 remaining in the third quarter. And he didn’t stop there.

Watson was decisive and ferocious on the move. His athleticism doesn’t always pop when he’s attacking — he needs time to load up properly. But when he has it, he soars to the rim. He put on a show with an array of spectacular dunks and funky finishes. It wasn’t just the scoring, either. Watson also corralled 12 rebounds, good for another career-high.