The future of the NBA is awfully bright with this next generation of stars currently taking the league by storm.

LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, Kobe Bryant and a host of others hold the headlines today, but it won't be too many years before they're relegated to retirement or emeritus elite status.

Time moves quickly.

The development of promising youngsters like Ricky Rubio, DeMarcus Cousins, Greg Monroe, Damian Lillard and Kemba Walker means they'll likely be stars for a long time.

Yet even they didn't make our list.

Assistant NBA Editors Ethan Norof and Joel C. Cordes tab the next wave of talent which is poised to eventually become the league's face and driving force.