Fearless List of Sports Stars Poised for 2017 Takeover
A plethora of figures emerged as budding sports stars in 2016.
Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott became the faces of the Dallas Cowboys, Conor McGregor established himself as the biggest draw in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane proved he wasn't a one-hit wonder.
A new group of athletes will take the sports world by storm in 2017.
Jalen Hurts may become the top young football player in the country by the end of next year, Auston Matthews and Connor McDavid are the new faces of the National Hockey League, and Khabib Nurmagomedov apparently isn't going to wait to become the UFC's next superstar.
2017 should be a monumental year for rising sports stars. Who among the following 10 individuals will be the biggest overall sports star on December 31 of next year?
Connor McDavid
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Those running the NHL better realize what the league has in young superstars Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews.
The Edmonton Oilers are currently one of the top clubs in the Western Conference thanks largely to McDavid's efforts. McDavid, who turns 20 years old in January, is the youngest captain in NHL history per Sportsnet's Mark Spector, and the wunderkind is a prototypical attacking star. His on-the-puck skills are already elite, and he is a speedster on the ice.
Per NHL.com, McDavid currently leads the league in points (31) and assists (20), and the center will be an MVP candidate next spring so long as the Oilers retain their winning ways during the cold winter months.
Hockey remains somewhat off the radar until the NFL season comes to an end, and thus you may not have seen much of McDavid's play during the first two months of the NHL campaign. Be prepared to see plenty of McDavid over the next decade, as he is one of the future faces of the sport.
He may also win some hardware in 2017.
Sage Northcutt
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Sage Northcutt may become the top babyface in the UFC next year.
As Mike Bohn of MMAjunkie wrote in September 2015, Northcutt became the third-youngest debutant in UFC history last fall. Northcutt turned 20 years old this past March, and yet the lightweight already has a 3-1 record in the top mixed martial arts promotion in the world.
You wouldn't know Northcutt is a fighter just by looking at him. He somewhat resembles your younger brother you would defend against a bully. As Marc Raimondi of MMA Fighting alluded to in September, Northcutt doesn't routinely talk trash like the outspoken Conor McGregor.
Northcutt is scheduled to fight Mickey Gall in December.
A win over Gall won't make Northcutt a household name, but it would elevate his status heading into 2017. Northcutt has the talent and the look to be a draw and a star for the UFC, and we all should remember he's still evolving as a fighter and an athlete.
His best is likely yet to come.
Andrew Benintendi
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Boston Red Sox outfielder Andrew Benintendi is already off to a hot start to his career.
Per Baseball-Reference.com, Benintendi batted .295 in his 105 at-bats in 2016. The 22-year-old drove home 14 RBI, hit two home runs and finished the fall with an OBP of .359 and an .835 OPS.
As Mike Axisa of CBS Sports explained, Benintendi is eligible to win Rookie of the Year in 2017, and he may be an early favorite for that award.
Benintendi bats left-handed, and he can feature in multiple slots in any lineup due to his ability to hit for power and get on base. He's also solid in the field, and it doesn't hurt Benintendi's stock that he plays for the Red Sox, one of the most famous sports entities in the country and a club that made the playoffs this year.
In 2016, Benintendi provided glimpses of what he could offer Boston in the future. The Red Sox would be downright silly to even listen to trade offers for his services between now and next August.
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Nathaniel Chalobah
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Chelsea can afford to be patient with 21-year-old Nathaniel Chalobah. The Blues sit atop the Premier League table as of the final weekend of November, and thus manager Antonio Conte doesn't need to make Chalobah a lineup mainstay before the end of 2016.
Chalobah may earn his place among Conte's chosen players in 2017. The young phenom who, per Dominic King of the Daily Mail, earned his 34th cap for England's under-21 squad in November can feature in the midfield or in defense, and he impressed Conte so much in preseason matches that the Chelsea boss didn't allow him to leave the club on loan this past summer, per Jack Pitt-Brooke of The Independent.
While Chalobah possesses ideal size to play at center back, he is also a box-to-box midfielder who can help produce counterattacks. He is fortunate to be part of a winning culture and a club that is routinely earning positive results this fall. Chelsea may not need him right now, but look for Chalobah to establish himself as a star for club and country in 2017.
Karl-Anthony Towns
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Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns is a joy to watch.
It's easy to forget Towns won NBA Rookie of the Year for the 2015-16 season. The Timberwolves failed to leave a lasting impression last season, and sports fans who don't follow the NBA on a daily basis probably didn't see a lot of the club or Towns during his first year in the league.
But we're all taking notice of Towns this fall.
ESPN's Kevin Arnovitz referred to Towns as the "big man of tomorrow" earlier this month because of his size and other physical attributes. Towns is a 7-footer who can handle the ball like a point guard. He pump-faked Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid before delivering a bombastic dunk that made for quite the memorable highlight during a game on November 17.
Towns' footwork is extraordinary for a young man who turned 21 in November.
Towns probably won't hoist the MVP trophy in 2017, as he doesn't play for the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, Oklahoma City Thunder or Cleveland Cavaliers. Do not be surprised, though, if he is an early candidate to win that award for the 2017-18 season.
Landon Collins
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It's OK if you've forgotten New York Giants safety Landon Collins underwhelmed during his rookie season. Collins has done well to erase those performances from memories this fall.
As Newsday's Tom Rock recently wrote, Collins may have a shot to win Defensive Player of the Year and even MVP honors for 2016, depending on what happens during the final month of the season. The 22-year-old snagged five interceptions in New York's first 11 games of the campaign, and he emerged as the top defensive player for a team that enters December with a record of 8-3.
The numbers don't speak of Collins' overall value to the Giants this fall. Collins is stellar against the run, and he is a legitimate pass-rusher playing in a scheme created by defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. Rock and others have gone so far as to compare Collins to former Baltimore Ravens safety Ed Reed.
Reed is widely perceived as the best safety of his generation.
Khabib Nurmagomedov
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UFC fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov clearly isn't enamored with Conor McGregor.
Per Damon Martin of Fox Sports, Nurmagomedov wants to fight for the interim title if McGregor won't fight him for the lightweight championship in early 2017. Nurmagomedov currently sits underneath only McGregor in the official UFC rankings for the lightweight division, and the 28-year-old has a perfect pro record of 24-0.
Nurmagomedov dominated and defeated Michael Johnson at UFC 205.
Nurmagomedov is not yet a household name, but he possesses the necessary tools to become one of the top stars in the UFC. He has proven his fighting skills in the UFC on multiple occasions, and like McGregor, he isn't afraid to speak his mind. A showdown between Nurmagomedov and McGregor should occur in 2017, and it's a fight that could put Nurmagomedov on the map.
A fight between Nurmagomedov and McGregor in Ireland could make for quite the memorable pay-per-view event.
Auston Matthews
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Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews made headlines this fall when he entered a scoring drought. That's how good the rookie already is in his first NHL season. Fans and observers expect him to excel on the ice even though he played his first game with the club this October.
As ESPN's Craig Custance recently explained, Matthews scored six goals in his first six contests with the Maple Leafs before apparently hitting the figurative rookie wall. This wouldn't be all that concerning for any standard rookie, but Matthews is already a star in the league. Some, thus, tend to forget he turned 19 in September.
Matthews and the previously mentioned Connor McDavid will, so long as neither encounters significant physical setbacks, carry the NHL on their backs into the next decade.
Both men could compete for individual awards over the next two years. Matthews seems destined to be named captain of one of the most famous hockey clubs in the world, and that should only help make him a bigger star among both passionate fans and those who ignore the NHL until the playoffs begin.
Per Jared Clinton of the Hockey News, Matthews was responsible for the best-selling NHL jersey as of this October.
Joel Embiid
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Some pro athletes are worth the wait. Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid may prove himself to be such a case.
Embiid entered the NBA in June 2014, but injuries kept him sidelined throughout what should have been his first two pro seasons. The 22-year-old debuted for Philadelphia this October, and he looks to be the real deal in the infancy of his tenure with the club.
As Rohan Nadkarni recently wrote, Embiid is an early favorite to win Rookie of the Year for the 2016-17 campaign. Embiid is on his way to leading all rookies in points, rebounds and blocks, and the big man is doing so with his minutes limited by the 76ers each game due to concerns about his health.
Casual fans may not see a lot of Embiid over the next several months due to Philadelphia's awful record, but he seems on track to become one of the best centers in the league in 2017.
Jalen Hurts
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Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Hurts probably won't win the Heisman this year.
As Alec Shirkey of SEC Country explained, Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson will likely win the award for 2016 even though Jackson's resume isn't as impressive today as it was earlier in the fall. Voters are human, after all, and some probably chose their winner earlier in November and before the final weekend of the month.
Hurts may not win the Heisman this year, but he has to be a favorite to take the trophy home for 2017. The freshman guided the Tide to a perfect record during the regular season leading up to the conference championship game, and he is arguably the top offensive player in the SEC.
There's no reason to believe Hurts won't improve as he matures, as the young man who may begin 2017 as a national champion turned only 19 years old in August.
The future seems bright for a quarterback well on his way to becoming a No. 1 draft pick.
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