Predicting the 25 Best Athletes of the Next 25 Years
Twenty-five years. The sports world has produced countless indelible memories during the 21st century's opening quarter, and it would be a gargantuan task to conjure it all in one place.
To help sift through all of the dizzying heights, jaw-dropping feats, unforgettable players and teams, the Bleacher Report staff got together to run back the best of the past two-and-a-half decades in sports—because, hey, reminiscing is part of why we're all fans.
Today, we're flipping the script, putting our hands to our temples and shining our crystal balls while we try to predict the biggest stars of the next 25 years in the final installment of our six-part Quarter Century series. Of course, this is a lengthy time frame—the next LeBron or Serena could be born tomorrow—so we're having a little fun with this one.
To determine the ranking, a staff vote gave us our pool of finalists. Voters were instructed to choose players who have the best chance of performing at a high level over the next two decades.
A few established stars were fair game for inclusion, as they are of an age and play a position that give them a reasonable chance of being an A-lister for at least the next 10 years. Essentially: Who has a good shot of making our most influential figures list when future B/R does this exercise in 2050?
Once that was set, the rankings were subject to a smaller expert panel to produce the final order.
You can find the other installments of the series linked below.
Player write-ups by Joel Reuter unless otherwise noted
25. Ryan Williams, NCAA Football
1 of 25
Sport: College Football
Age: 17
Originally part of the 2025 recruiting class, wide receiver Ryan Williams reclassified to 2024 and still checked in as the No. 4 overall prospect in his class, earning 5-star recruit status at 247Sports. He will not turn 18 years old until February and was the youngest FBS player in the nation in 2024.
The 6'0", 175-pound speedster made an immediate impact during his first season at Alabama, hauling in 45 catches for 857 yards and eight touchdowns, also adding two more scores on the ground.
He did a lot of that damage through the first five games of the season, tallying 19 receptions for 544 yards and six touchdowns, so he will enter his sophomore year with something to prove.
With Jalen Milroe expected to leave for the NFL, he will have a new quarterback throwing his way in 2025, but his immense talent will make him an impact contributor regardless. All signs point to him being a high 2027 NFL draft pick and potential future star in the NFL.
24. Jayson Tatum, NBA
2 of 25
Age: 26
The Boston Celtics held the No. 1 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft but opted to flip the selection to the Philadelphia 76ers, who were enamored with Washington guard Markelle Fultz.
The two teams swapped picks, with the Celtics moving down to No. 3 overall in exchange for a 2019 first-round pick, and Duke one-and-done freshman Jayson Tatum ended up being their pick.
"Boston president of basketball operations Danny Ainge told reporters that he believes the player the Celtics will now choose at No. 3 would be the same one they would have taken at No. 1," wrote Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press.
An immediate starter who played 30.5 minutes per game and averaged 13.9 points per game as a rookie, Tatum has steadily developed into one of the best players in the NBA, averaging 27.7 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists over the past five seasons.
He led the Celtics to the NBA title last year before a controversial run with Team USA in the Olympics spent largely watching from the bench. However, his time will come to be one of the faces of the sport, as the torch gets passed by LeBron James, Steph Curry and others.
23. Angel Reese, WNBA
3 of 25
Age: 22
A McDonald's All-American coming out of high school who began her collegiate career at Maryland, Angel Reese transferred to LSU ahead of her junior season and quickly emerged as one of the faces of women's college basketball.
She led the SEC in points (23.0) and rebounds (15.4) per game during the 2022-23 season, earning All-American honors while helping to lead the Tigers to a national championship over Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes.
After averaging another double-double as a senior, she went No. 7 overall in the 2024 draft to the Chicago Sky. She averaged 13.6 points and 13.1 rebounds per game as a rookie, setting a WNBA record with 10 straight double-doubles along the way.
She shot just 39.1 percent from the floor, but her talent is undeniable, and her media-fueled rivalry with Clark has helped make her one of the most recognizable athletes in her sport.
.jpg?w=256 "Chiefs Giants Football")
22. Shedeur Sanders, CFB
4 of 25
Age: 22
A 4-star recruit who chose Jackson State over a laundry list of offers that included Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, Oregon, Tennessee and others, Shedeur Sanders went 23-3 in two seasons at the FCS level before following his Hall of Fame father, Deion, to the University of Colorado.
He threw for 510 yards and four touchdowns in a 45-42 victory over No. 17 TCU in his first FBS game, and while the Buffaloes failed to maintain their early success, the hype train has been flying down the tracks ever since.
With 3,926 yards and 35 touchdowns, he was one of the most productive quarterbacks in the nation in 2024, and his 74.2 percent completion rate led all qualified FBS quarterbacks on his way to finishing eighth in Heisman Trophy balloting.
There is a good chance he will be the first quarterback off the board in the 2025 NFL draft, and he is the rare collegiate player who became a household name before ever starting his pro career.
21. Juan Soto, MLB
5 of 25
Age: 26
The New York Mets signed outfielder Juan Soto to the richest contract in pro sports history earlier this offseason, agreeing to a mind-boggling 15-year, $765 million deal that could be worth up to $805 million when all is said and done.
Now the question is whether he will be a franchise-altering addition who brings multiple titles to the organization, or a cautionary tale.
Soto made his MLB debut as a teenager in 2018, and the following year he helped lead the Washington Nationals to a World Series title, celebrating his 21st birthday during Game 3 of the Fall Classic.
In the years since, he has established himself as an elite offensive player, and while he slugged a career-high 41 home runs in 2024 while helping to lead the New York Yankees to the World Series, the foundation of his game is his elite on-base ability, which should help him age better than most.
With 36.4 WAR through seven seasons, he is on a Hall of Fame trajectory and just entering the prime of his career.
20. Trinity Rodman, NWSL
6 of 25
Age: 22
The No. 2 pick in the 2021 NWSL draft, Trinity Rodman wasted no time in making a name for herself with the Washington Spirit. Seven goals and seven assists in 25 games earned her Rookie of the Year honors and a spot among the league's Best XI. The lasting memory from the forward's debut season came when she assisted on the title-winning goal to give the franchise its first championship.
As a 19-year-old, she was also named U.S. Soccer's Young Female Player of the Year in 2021, her second time being nominated for the award. Of course, international competition trumps U.S. domestic play when it comes to public attention and prestige, and—sorry for the spoiler in the image above—she's already somewhat accomplished on that stage too.
Rodman made her international debut at 19 years old, and has since garnered 46 caps and posted 10 goals. The crowning achievement on her burgeoning U.S. women's national team resume is the gold medal she helped win in Paris in 2024.
In September, Rodman became the youngest player in NWSL history to post 50 goal contributions (29 goals, 21 assists) at 22 years, 119 days old, per OptaJack.
The only question now is if the daughter of NBA Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman can continue to cement herself as a face of the sport in the U.S. when the World Cup hits Brazil in 2027.
—Jason Dunbar
19. Elly De La Cruz, MLB
7 of 25
Age: 22
With a rare mix of size, athleticism, power and speed, Elly De La Cruz emerged from the Cincinnati Reds farm system as one of the most hyped MLB prospects of the past decade.
After tallying 13 home runs and 35 steals in 98 games as a rookie, he took a significant step forward in his first full season in the big leagues in 2024, hitting .259/.339/.471 for a 119 OPS and filling up the stat sheet with 36 doubles, 10 triples, 25 home runs, 76 RBI, 105 runs scored and 67 steals.
His 218 strikeouts and 29 errors this past season speak to the work he still needs to do in refining his game, but in terms of raw tools, few players in the sport offer more upside.
The fact that he has managed to generate so much hype without playing in a major media market speaks to a truly dynamic skill set.
18. CJ Stroud, NFL
8 of 25
Age: 23
CJ Stroud racked up 8,123 passing yards and 85 touchdowns in his two seasons as the starting quarterback at Ohio State before going No. 2 overall in the 2023 NFL draft to the Houston Texans.
Coming off a 3-13-1 season with Davis Mills as the starting quarterback, the Texans immediately handed Stroud the keys to the franchise, and he rewarded them with a record-setting rookie campaign.
Out of the gates he looked like a veteran under center, setting an NFL record with 191 pass attempts to begin his career before he threw his first interception. If not for a concussion that cost him two games during the second half, he almost certainly would have broken Andrew Luck's record (4,374) for most passing yards by a rookie.
He ended up throwing for 4,108 yards and 23 touchdowns while leading the Texans to a 10-7 record during the regular season. They then won their first playoff game since 2019 with a victory over the Cleveland Browns before getting bumped by the Baltimore Ravens.
He has continued to impress in his second season and looks poised to be one of the NFL's premier quarterbacks for years to come.
17. Kylian Mbappé, La Liga
9 of 25
Age: 26
As is the case with Tatum and one glaring example to come, French soccer star Kylian Mbappé is already one of the world's most accomplished athletes in his sport. The young forward dominated Ligue 1, having topped the table seven times, been named its top footballer on three occasions and taken its scoring crown six times.
Internationally, he's netted 48 goals and has 86 caps for a French national team that won the 2018 World Cup and was runner-up to Lionel Messi's Argentina in 2022. When Mbappé scored in the 4-2 World Cup final win over Croatia, the then-19-year-old became the youngest to do so in a final since Pele in 1958.
By 25, he had more goals and assists across all competitions (309 and 148) than Messi (279, 121) and Cristiano Ronaldo (160 and 70) did at the same age—albeit largely among a step down in competition compared to La Liga and the Premier League.
That's not to say he's expected to enter the GOAT conversation alongside two of history's giants, but the trajectory he is on is tantalizing. He just turned 26 in December and made his move to Real Madrid in July. After a bumpy start with Los Blancos, his recent form has him up to 14 goals across all competitions with the club.
If he can find his way to a Ballon d'Or or two while taking the Spanish championship as well as finding Champions League glory—lofty but attainable goals for someone of his stature—he could well be the sport's defining face over the next decade-plus.
—Jason Dunbar
16. Paige Bueckers, NCAA Basketball
10 of 25
Age: 23
Paige Bueckers was the No. 1 recruit in a stacked 2020 high school class that also featured the likes of Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, Cameron Brink, Kamilla Cardoso, Hailey Van Lith and others, taking home Gatorade Player of the Year honors during her senior year.
She landed at UConn and made an immediate impact as a true freshman, averaging 20.0 points and 5.8 rebounds while knocking down 64 threes at a blistering 46.4 percent clip to win National Player of the Year honors for a Huskies team that went 28-2 and reached the Final Four.
Injuries limited her to 17 games as a sophomore and then she missed the entire 2022-23 season recovering from a torn ACL, but she returned strong last season, earning First Team All-American honors for the second time in her career while averaging 21.9 points per game.
Now in her senior year, Bueckers is expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, and her combination of perimeter scoring and playmaking should make her one of the faces of the league in the coming years.
15. Lamine Yamal, La Liga
11 of 25
Age: 17
All you really need to know about Spanish wonderkid Lamine Yamal is that he finished fifth in the race for The Best FIFA Men's Player in 2024. Before his 18th birthday. For one of the most recognizable soccer clubs in the world, Barcelona.
The right winger also made The Best FIFA Men's 11, as his star burned brightly during Spain's UEFA Euro 2024 win. He became the youngest player (16 years, 338 days) and scorer in the competition's history (16 years, 362 days), and the latter mark also saw him net the tying goal in the eventual semifinal win over France.
The 2-1 final victory over England came just a day after his 17th birthday, making him the youngest player to appear in a major international final. His four assists in the tournament also made him the event's top assist provider, and he was the first player to ever contribute to a goal in the final three rounds of a single Euros.
Recently, he dropped his first signature cleats, the LY304 with Adidas, and his market value is the fifth-highest in the world among soccer players, according to Transfermarkt. His signature move, the trivela—a pass with the outside of his foot—is also a part of EA Sports' video game FC25.
"You need to press the L2 button and then pass, go and try it!" he told reporters of the Playstation version of the game (h/t The Athletic's Pol Ballus). "I think it is a pass that I can do very well, I am confident with it, so I will not stop trying."
It's safe to say his star is burning brightly.
—Jason Dunbar
14. JuJu Watkins, NCAA Basketball
12 of 25
Age: 19
JuJu Watkins exploded onto the women's college basketball scene as a true freshman last year, finishing second in the nation with 27.1 points per game while leading USC to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament and a run to the Elite Eight.
Her scoring is down a tick so far during her sophomore season to 24.7 points per game, but she has become a more efficient player across the board, raising her field-goal percentage (40.1 to 45.4 percent) and three-point percentage (31.9 to 34.3 percent) while also trimming her turnover rate (4.1 to 3.2 per game).
The 6'2" guard is well on her way to First Team All-American honors for the second year in a row, and she will not turn 20 years old until July 15, putting her on a superstar trajectory once her college run comes to a close.
With more eyes on the WNBA than ever before, she has a chance to be a household name once she starts her pro career.
13. Jayden Daniels, NFL
13 of 25
Age: 24
There is still time for Caleb Williams to deliver on the hype and upside that he brought to the Chicago Bears as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, but there is little question who the best quarterback in that draft has been so far.
Jayden Daniels threw for 3,812 yards and 40 touchdowns while averaging a staggering 11.7 yards per attempt during the 2023 season at LSU, and he added another 1,134 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground en route to taking home the Heisman Trophy.
Despite an inconsistent track record prior to that breakthrough performance, Daniels showed enough to go right after Williams at No. 2 overall in the 2024 draft to the Washington Commanders.
His dual-threat skills have translated to the next level nicely. He has tallied 3,045 passing yards, 656 rushing yards and 23 total touchdowns as a rookie, vaulting a Commanders team that finished 4-13 a year ago into the thick of playoff contention and putting himself on the map as the next great quarterback of the future.
12. Bobby Witt Jr., MLB
14 of 25
Age: 24
Here is a complete list of all shortstops in MLB history who have recorded multiple seasons with 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in their career:
That's it, that's the entire list.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 2019 draft immediately became the future face of the franchise the moment he joined the Kansas City Royals organization, and he has improved drastically in each of his first three seasons in the majors.
Following a 30-homer, 49-steal, 4.4-WAR season in 2023, the Royals inked him to a massive 11-year, $288.8 million extension, putting him on track to be the club's most impactful homegrown player since George Brett.
He responded by hitting .332/.389/.588 for a 171 OPS with 211 hits, 45 doubles, 32 home runs, 109 RBI, 125 runs scored, 31 steals and 9.4 WAR in 161 games. He finished runner-up in AL MVP voting, won his first Gold Glove and led the Royals to an unexpected playoff berth.
11. Carlos Alcaraz, ATP Tour
15 of 25
Age: 21
Carlos Alcaraz announced himself to the tennis world in 2021 when he was the youngest participant in men's singles at the Australian Open at 17 years old, and he went on to win his first match before he was eliminated.
His career took off following that debut, and in 2022 he won the U.S. Open. That vaulted him to the top of the men's singles rankings, and he became the youngest player in the ATP rankings era to earn the No. 1 spot at 19 years, four months and six days.
He has since added 2023 and 2024 Wimbledon titles and the 2024 French Open title to his ever-growing resume, and he won the silver medal at the 2024 Olympics, falling to Novak Djokovic in the gold-medal match.
The current No. 3 in the world still needs to add an Australian Open title to his trophy case, but he has already accomplished more in a few short years than most who came before him, and youth is on his side.
10. Patrick Mahomes, NFL
16 of 25
Age: 29
At 29 years old, Patrick Mahomes is the oldest athlete on this list, but quarterbacks age as well as anyone and he figures to make a compelling GOAT case in the coming years if the Kansas City Chiefs keep winning.
Keep in mind, Tom Brady was 43 years old when he won his seventh and final Super Bowl ring with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020, so it's not out of the question to think Mahomes could have another decade of peak-level performance in him.
Already a two-time MVP and three-time Super Bowl champion, Mahomes has 31,772 yards and 241 touchdowns to his credit through eight seasons, and the Chiefs have won back-to-back Super Bowls with a 13-1 record so far this year.
Sustained success in the NFL is never easy, especially once a player is on the wrong side of 30 years old, but Mahomes has proven to be a special talent and one who could be rewriting the record books a decade from now.
9. Paul Skenes, MLB
17 of 25
Age: 22
Projecting a young pitcher for stardom is always tricky, even when they have already enjoyed success at the highest level, as there may be no position in professional sports more susceptible to injuries and general inconsistency.
However, Paul Skenes looks like a generational talent.
Armed with an electric fastball that regularly touches triple digits and averages 98.8 mph, along with a lethal assortment of secondary offerings, Skenes went 11-3 with a 1.96 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 170 strikeouts in 133 innings in 2024.
If the Pittsburgh Pirates had put him on the Opening Day roster, there's a very real chance he would have joined Fernando Valenzuela as the only rookie pitchers ever to win Cy Young.
The 6'6", 235-pound right-hander started the All-Star Game, won NL Rookie of the Year honors and checks all the boxes to be a perennial Cy Young contender for the next decade-plus.
8. Luka Dončić, NBA
18 of 25
Age: 25
Luka Dončić fills up the stat sheet in a way that few others across the NBA are capable of doing, with career averages of 28.7 points, 8.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists in 420 games over seven seasons with the Dallas Mavericks.
Since winning 2018-19 Rookie of the Year honors, he has averaged at least 27 points per game and finished in the top eight in MVP voting every year, and he had the best season of his career a year ago.
Not only did he win the NBA scoring title with a career-high 33.9 points per game, but he also carried the Mavericks to the Finals where they lost to the Boston Celtics.
He already ranks seventh in NBA history with 80 career triple-doubles, and he has the talent to be one of the faces of the league for the next decade.
7. Travis Hunter, NCAA Football
19 of 25
Age: 21
Will Travis Hunter get a chance to be a two-way player at the next level?
The 2024 Heisman Trophy winner's role in the NFL remains to be seen, but he turned the college football world on its head this season by thriving as the gridiron equivalent of Shohei Ohtani.
On offense, he was one of the best wide receivers in the country, tallying 92 receptions for 1,152 yards and 14 touchdowns. On defense, he was a shutdown cornerback, logging 21 solo tackles, four interceptions and 11 pass deflections.
The logical move might be to use him as a regular cornerback who occasionally sees the field as a receiver, similar to the role his coach Deion Sanders filled during his time with the Dallas Cowboys.
However, he is a special athlete who has a legitimate shot at thriving on both sides of the ball, so don't be surprised if his next team gets creative in finding ways to utilize his immense talent.
6. Arch Manning, NCAA Football
20 of 25
Age: 19
In the transfer portal era, it's rare to see a highly touted recruit who is willing to sit on the bench and wait his turn, especially when that recruit is a quarterback.
Arch Manning was a 5-star recruit and the No. 1 overall player in the 2023 recruiting class, which coupled with his famous bloodlines made him one of the most hyped prep prospects in recent memory. However, he has spent the duration of his college career at the University of Texas to date behind Quinn Ewers on the depth chart.
When Ewers suffered an oblique injury earlier this year, Manning got a chance to show what he could do in one extended relief appearance and two starts. In those three games, he threw for 806 yards with eight touchdowns and two interceptions, adding another 82 yards and two scores on the ground.
He should finally get a chance to show what he can do over a full season next year, and if the brief glimpses he has shown are any indication, stardom awaits.
5. Cooper Flagg, NCAA Basketball
21 of 25
Age: 17
When LeBron James says he thinks you're going to be a "big-time player," people take notice.
That was his take on Cooper Flagg after the rising college freshman had a chance to practice with the Select Team against Team USA in the lead-up to the 2024 Olympics, gaining some invaluable experience and holding his own against the best players in the world.
Flagg is now in the early stages of what will almost certainly be a one-and-done stint at Duke, averaging 16.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.4 blocks through his first 11 games.
The 6'9" forward is still developing his all-around game, and his efficiency numbers leave something to be desired, but he has the raw talent to be a superstar in the NBA, and he is the heavy favorite to go No. 1 overall in the 2025 draft.
4. Anthony Edwards, NBA
22 of 25
Age: 23
Anthony Edwards has the talent and the personality to be the face of the NBA once aging legends like LeBron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant and others finally ride off into the sunset.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 draft upped his scoring average and his shooting percentage in each of his first four years in the NBA, closing out the 2023-24 season averaging 25.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists for a Minnesota Timberwolves team that won 56 games and reached the Western Conference Finals.
This season, he has taken a step forward with his outside shooting, knocking down a blistering 42.4 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc after logging a 35.3 percent rate over his first four seasons.
He was the youngest player in the league to receive MVP votes last season, and he averaged 12.8 points in 16.3 minutes per game for Team USA in the Olympics to win a gold medal. He could be the future face of the NBA and of USA basketball.
3. Connor Bedard, NHL
23 of 25
Age: 19
Connor Bedard is the best hockey prospect to come along in a generation.
He was granted "exceptional player status" when he was 14 years old, which allowed him to join the junior-level Western Hockey League a year early.
After becoming the youngest player ever to score 50 goals in the WHL and just the third 16-year-old ever with 100 points during the 2021-22 season, he had an absolutely absurd third and final campaign with the Pats.
During the 2022-23 season, he tallied 71 goals and 72 assists in 57 games, adding another 10 goals and 10 assists over seven games in the playoffs, and that performance solidified his status as the clear No. 1 prospect in the 2023 draft.
The Blackhawks took him with the top pick, and he won the Calder Trophy last season with 22 goals and 39 assists in 68 games, kicking off what could be an all-time great career.
2. Caitlin Clark, WNBA
24 of 25
Age: 22
Few athletes have had a more profound impact on the popularity of their sport than Caitlin Clark has for women's basketball over the past few years, going back to her time at the University of Iowa.
With limitless range and a fearless trigger, Clark scored 3,951 points during her four seasons with the Hawkeyes, becoming the all-time leading scorer in both men's and women's college basketball.
She won National Player of the Year honors during her junior and senior seasons, leading the nation in scoring and assists both years, and she averaged 31.6 points, 7.4 rebounds and 8.9 assists her senior year.
The Indiana Fever selected her No. 1 overall in the 2024 draft, and she won Rookie of the Year and finished fourth in MVP voting in her WNBA debut, averaging 19.2 points, 8.4 assists and 5.7 rebounds while leading a team that finished 13-27 the previous year to a 20-20 record and a playoff berth.
Attendance numbers for opposing teams when the Fever are in town tell the story of just how many eyes she has brought to her sport, and she is just getting started.
1. Victor Wembanyama, NBA
25 of 25
Age: 20
Remember growing up when you would create-a-player in NBA 2K, make him as tall as possible, jack up all of his attributes, and then watch as he rained three-pointers on one end of the floor and rejected shots on the other end?
That's Victor Wembanyama.
The 7'3", 235-pound wing averaged 21.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3.6 blocks during his rookie season for the San Antonio Spurs, winning Rookie of the Year honors and finishing second in Defensive Player of the Year voting.
This year, he is shooting more threes (5.5 to 9.1 per game) and hitting them at a higher rate (32.5 to 34.3 percent), en route to 24.5 points, 10.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3.5 blocks per contest through his first 22 games.
He is a truly unique talent, and one that is still just scratching the surface of his long-term potential as he takes aim at an all-time great career. Simply put, there is no player on this list with a more limitless long-term ceiling.
.jpg?w=480 "Chiefs Giants Football")
.jpg?w=600 "Browns GM Speaks on Trade Buzz")
