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On the brink of greatness

Who are the up-and-comers waiting to become prime-time players?

By Tom Jones
Published January 2, 2007

A new year means new athletes. We already know about LeBron and Tiger, Peyton and Annika, Federer and Pujols. But which athletes are ready to make smashing debuts in 2007? Who are the up-and-comers waiting to become prime-time players? You've heard a few of these names. You probably haven't heard of a few more. But by the end of 2007, all sports fans will know these names. Here are 10 athletes to watch in 2007:

Delmon Young

Forget the attitude. Forget when he clunked a bat off an umpire's chest in the minors. Forget all the junk he talked about the Devil Rays. Delmon Young, the No. 1 pick by the Rays in the 2003 draft, can flat-out play. He zipped through the minors without any problems at all (well, except for that bat-toss deal) and finally made it to the bigs at the end of August. Once with Tampa Bay, Young pretty much met all the lofty expectations, batting .317 with three homers and a .476 slugging percentage in 30 games. Now with his debut and all the hoopla surrounding it out of the way, Young can enter the 2007 season thinking about one thing: playing baseball. That's bad news for every American League team except the Rays.

Greg Oden

Let's face it: The only reason this 18-year-old is playing basketball at Ohio State is because NBA rules forbid him from playing in the NBA. There's some talk that the 7-foot center actually enjoys playing college basketball and could return to Columbus for his sophomore season. We say not a chance. There's a possibility he could single-handedly lead Ohio State to the national championship. There's no debate he will be the No. 1 pick in this summer's NBA draft. Some believe he might return to college to avoid getting drafted by a really bad team. But what's the point in that? No matter when he leaves school, he'll be a high pick. He might as well start dominating in the NBA in October.

Tim Tebow

The 2006 college football season was merely a preview for Florida's freshman quarterback. Think of the first time you saw a trailer for Jaws. Without even seeing the whole thing, you nearly jumped out of your seat, and you knew it was going to be a must-see. That was Tebow in 2006. Florida coach Urban Meyer gave Tebow just enough playing time to convince us something special is brewing in Gainesville. Next season, he won't have to carry a clipboard while Chris Leak runs the offense. It will be all Tebow. And it will be our pleasure to watch.

Evgeni Malkin

We admit, we're kind of cheating on this one. This guy is no longer a secret among those who follow the NHL. Everyone already has seen how good he is. In his first 30 games with the Penguins, Malkin already had 17 goals and 16 assists and is the leading contender for this season's rookie of the year. But because he plays with 19-year-old Sidney Crosby, this 20-year-old Russian who was the No. 2 overall pick in 2004 (behind Washington's sensational Alex Ovechkin) is overlooked. Has one team ever had two players 20 or younger who were this good? Not even the teenage tandem of Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier could match the numbers being put up by Crosby and Malkin.

Michelle Wie

It's so easy to forget she is only 17 years old. But we're reminded of it when we realize she still isn't eligible (without petition) to join the LPGA Tour, and therefore cannot be ranked in the LPGA standings. And while she has never won a tournament, she was at one point the No. 2 female golfer in the world in the World Golf Ranking. Okay, true, she hasn't won yet. But she finished in the top three in three of the four majors in 2006. It's only a matter of time before she breaks through, and this will be the year. She says she's going to Stanford, but that shouldn't stop her from joining the LPGA when she turns 18 in October. Our prediction: She will someday be the best female golfer in the world. And she will take her first steps toward that in 2007.

Angelo Esposito

Perhaps the best junior hockey prospect in the world. This 6-foot-1 center of the Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League is a scoring machine. In his first 33 games this season, he already had 54 points. Last season, he had 39 goals and 59 assists in 57 games. He will be a top-five pick in this summer's NHL draft, and our bet is he will go No. 1. Plus, he has a great hockey name. He isn't related to Phil and Tony Esposito, but he does wear No. 7 - Phil's old number with the Bruins.

Mike Pelfrey

He's 6 feet 7. He throws a fastball that brushes up near 100 mph. And he could be the 2007 National League rookie of year with the New York Mets. The sad thing is he should be throwing for the Devil Rays. The Rays drafted Pelfrey out of his Wichita, Kan., high school in the 15th round of the 2002 draft, but Pelfrey opted to attend Wichita State. After three years (and a 33-7 record) in college, Pelfrey was the ninth overall pick in 2005. In just one season of pro ball, Pelfrey made the jump from single A to double A, making his Mets debut July. He ended up back in triple A, but look for him to be a fixture in the Mets rotation this season - and for years to come.

Troy Tulowitzki

If the Mets' Mike Pelfrey isn't the NL rookie of the year in 2007, it might be the Rockies shortstop. After playing high school ball in Sunnyvale, Calif., and three years of college at Long Beach State, Tulowitzki was the seventh overall pick in the 2005 draft. He worked his way through the minors and eventually made it up with the big club during the second half of last season. He has great size (6 feet 3) and a cannon for an arm, and showed he can handle the bat. Plus, he'll be hitting in Coors Field. This guy is going to be a star.

Jimmy Clausen

If this California high school quarterback's name sounds familiar, it's because he is the younger brother of former University of Tennessee quarterbacks Casey and Rick Clausen. This Clausen is the best of the bunch. He's so good many predict he will start as a freshman for Notre Dame in the fall. In three years as a starter at Oaks Christian in Westlake Village, Calif., he went 42-0 and finished with 10,677 yards passing and a state-record 146 touchdowns. This season he threw for nearly 3,500 yards and 49 touchdowns. He is graduating early so he can start classes in the spring at Notre Dame (and, of course, take part in spring practice).

O.J. Mayo

The best high school basketball player in the country right now could be the best college player by the end of the year. The 6-5 guard was named to the Kentucky all-state team as an eighth-grader. He was Mr. Basketball in Ohio as a sophomore and junior at Cincinnati's North College Hill High. And was a second-team Parade All-American as a junior. This season, he is at Huntington High in West Virginia. He would be heading to the NBA, but the league has a rule that players must be a year out of high school before playing. He nearly committed to Florida, but instead signed a letter of intent to Southern Cal, where he could turn the Trojans into a national contender.

[Last modified January 1, 2007, 21:41:36]