Jaron Ennis is on the shortlist of being boxing's next big breakout star. 

Ennis (29-0, 27 KOs, 1 ND) has drawn comparisons to several elite contemporaries, and chief among the list is three-division champion and switch-hitting pound-for-pound star Terence Crawford. 

Showtime Boxing podcast hosts Eric Raskin and Kieran Mulvaney recently asked Crawford for his thoughts on the Philadelphia-based fighter, and the WBO welterweight champion only had glowing reviews to offer on Ennis. 

“Boots is a tremendous, talented guy. I've been watching him since his amateur days. He can [fight] both ways. He’s very strong, knows boxing. He's going to be a force to be reckoned with. Me and him, later down the line, if that comes on my table and that's the right fight for me, I'm taking it all,” said Crawford.

“Personally, if I was handling him, I would do whatever he wants to do at this point in time. He's proven that he belongs in the top echelon with the fights that he's fought. He deserves a shot. I'm not saying that he'd beat an elite fighter yet in the welterweight division, but the guys that he has fought, he's passed the test with flying colors. We'll never know until he gets in there with the likes of the elite.”

The 25-year-old Ennis is the No. 1 challenger to Errol Spence's IBF title following his second-round knockout win against Custio Clayton in May.

Ennis is also ranked as the No. 2 contender by the WBO and WBA, and No. 3 by the WBC. 

Should the stars perfectly align, Crawford and Ennis could one day meet in a match. 

Ennis has previously talked about a big game while comparing himself to Crawford. 

“I'm faster, stronger, smarter [than Crawford],” Ennis said last year. “Whatever he could do I could do better. He's older, I'm younger. He fights right-handed. I fight right-handed. He's a great fighter. I don't take anything away from him. At the end of the day, it's boxing. If you want to be great, you have to fight the best. That's what's going to happen.”

Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and broadcast reporter. He’s also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, via email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com or on www.ManoukAkopyan.com.