Peyton Watson says he’s ready for whatever comes his way Thursday.

There is uncertainty surrounding Watson’s role for Thursday’s Game 3 given Michael Porter Jr.’s shoulder injury sustained late in Monday’s loss to the Clippers. Porter participated in Wednesday’s late practice at Ball Arena, but that’s not enough to guarantee he’ll be available Thursday. He’s officially listed as questionable for Thursday’s game at Intuit Dome.

“I’m very optimistic, because Mike, I don’t think he gets enough credit for how tough he is, what he’s played through over these years. His pain threshold is something that people don’t understand, don’t get, that he deals with all year long,” Nuggets interim coach David Adelman said Wednesday. “Do I know if Mike’s going to play? No, but I do know if Mike can play, he will.”

If Porter can’t play, Watson and Russell Westbrook are the top candidates to round out the starting five. Westbrook has significantly more playoff experience, while the 6-foot-7 Watson offers more size. Watson played 14 minutes in each of the first two games of the series. In the first two years of his career, most of his playoff playing time came late in blowouts. He showed glimpses of what he can do in more meaningful minutes this postseason.

“He can provide defensive versatility that allows us to hide other people that are important to us offensively. It allows us to do more things out of timeouts,” Adelman said.

“I thought he had some good possessions on Kawhi (Leonard). The shot he made on Peyton was a really tough shot; a lot of his shots were.”

The 22-year-old Watson expressed confidence he could have success against Kawhi Leonard, who’s scored 22 and 39 points, respectively, in Games 1 and 2. Leonard has 25 pounds on Watson, but Denver’s forward has a 7-foot wingspan that comes in handy on defense.

“I’m looking forward to the challenge. I think I guarded him two possessions where he shot the ball last game. One he hit a real tough shot on me. The other one, I got a stop,” Watson said.

“I think that I can definitely disrupt him with my length and what I do on that end.”

Porter said he’s dealing with a joint sprain after diving on the court late in Monday’s game. While Porter being out would likely offer Watson a larger role, he’s hoping that’s not the case.

“Just being ready to play more, being prepared to be counted upon more, that’s something that I always look forward to,” Watson said. “I never take the responsibility for granted. I’m ready for whatever comes. Hopefully he can play and it’s not too severe, but if he can’t I’m ready.”