Although Bailey said there are no reasons why Watts cannot make his AFL debut in 2009, he said the fact Watts is still at school makes it a challenge.
"It's very tough on young Jack. He's competitive and wants to do everything he can for Melbourne. He's caught between school and football at the moment," Bailey told melbournefc.com.au exclusively.
"We're fully supportive of him doing school and making sure he gets an efficient training program, so he can still build for the possibility of playing AFL footy this year.
"We just need to make sure he's ready. We can't put a young player like Jack, or any young player, on the field too early. You can put them up to great pressure and if their bodies aren't ready, you also put them up to long-term injury. That's not in the best interest of Melbourne, or any young player. Most clubs have that stand."
Bailey said Watts' agility, speed and decision-making had been evident over pre-season.
Bailey also spoke highly of fellow draftee James Strauss.
"Straussy is a very determined trainer. He's progressed well over the pre-season. His body is maturing. He's a good decision-maker and a good kick. He's shown hardness on a few occasions. Physicality is something he's not shying away from," Bailey said.
And Bailey also warned football followers to allow exciting indigenous recruit Liam Jurrah some time to acclimatise to the rigours of the AFL.
"LJ [Jurrah] is a project player. He has some raw, natural, athletic football ability. But he probably hasn't got an AFL training age yet. What I mean by that is that we haven't got enough training in him yet, so he can sustain the rigours of AFL footy," Bailey said.
"He's got some freakish, athletic and football ability. We need to bring 'LJ' along, but we don't want to rush him. At 191cm, he's got that potential x-factor about him, although you never know until they start playing.”
