by David P. Greisman

Terence Crawford was just as quiet and unassuming three years ago as he is now. Back then, very few fight fans knew who he was. Now, an increasing number of people recognize that he is one of the best boxers in the world today.

His disposition hasn’t much changed even though his position in the sport has. It’s a strange thing in the fight game, where actions truly do speak louder than words yet the words nevertheless tend to pour forth voluminously and with volume.

Crawford’s ascent began by seizing a fortuitous opportunity. He was scheduled to appear on a non-televised undercard in March 2013. That spot was a familiar one five years into his development. This, then, was his time to break out.

When Khabib Allakhverdiev got hurt ahead of a bout with Breidis Prescott, Crawford stepped in with barely a week’s notice. Crawford had already been in training, though not for an opponent of Prescott’s level. In fact, as a pro he’d never faced anyone like Prescott. That didn’t matter. Crawford, who had been in the process of dropping down to lightweight, went in with the 140-pound Prescott and won impressively. The victory came on HBO, whose executives knew they’d lucked into something good.

They probably didn’t realize they had found a true gem.

Six of his seven fights since then have been on the network. He stopped Alejandro Sanabria next, won a snoozer of a decision over Andrey Klimov in October 2013, then began his 2014 by jumping off American airwaves and crossing an ocean to outpoint Ricky Burns for a lightweight world title. Crawford was back on HBO within months, and this time he took a thriller, triumphing in a firefight with Yuriorkis Gamboa. He wrapped up last year with a decision over Ray Beltran, finishing a three-fight campaign that got him recognition from the Boxing Writers Association of America as its “Fighter of the Year.”

This year won’t bring a second-straight award. But it could bring far bigger things in 2016.

Crawford moved to junior welterweight in April, winning a technical knockout of Thomas Dulorme and capturing a world title in a second weight class. His first defense of that belt came this past Saturday, when he adjusted in the opening round to what Dierry Jean was doing and proceeded to dominate, scoring three knockdowns on the night and ending the fight in the 10th round.

He still hasn’t beaten the best of 135 or the best of 140. These days, that’s not always the fault of the fighter. And these days, a boxer can go without cleaning out his division yet still be seen as one of the most talented fighters in the world. To the eye, Crawford appears to be very, very good. And that’s why our eyes could see Crawford take on Manny Pacquiao in 2016.

These past couple weeks have brought multiple reports that Pacquiao may fight just one more time before retiring. That farewell bout would come in early April, allowing Pacquiao to go from the ring to the campaign trail, as the most famous congressman in the Philippines is vying for a spot in his country’s senate.

Crawford did his part by besting Jean. Now it depends on whom Pacquiao wants to face and how those negotiations go.

There’s been plenty of talk about a fight with Amir Khan, who used to be with Freddie Roach, the same trainer as Pacquiao. Whom Khan used to be with is less important. What’s more important now is that Khan is with adviser Al Haymon, whose stable has been appearing on Haymon’s “Premier Boxing Champions” cards and/or on Showtime.

Pacquiao is with HBO, and his promoter, Top Rank, does not have a regular working relationship with Haymon. All of those sides were able to sort through business and personality conflicts to make millions upon millions with Floyd Mayweather vs. Pacquiao. Anything else would take a tremendous shift in the status quo.

There also are a couple of potential rematches — a fifth fight with Juan Manuel Marquez or a third bout against Timothy Bradley. There’s less demand for another installment with Bradley, even though the official record has each man winning one apiece. It’s canon that Pacquiao was robbed in his first fight with Bradley, and nothing about their sequel, which Pacquiao won, led to a call for them to fight one more time. Bradley has to get through his Nov. 7 bout with Brandon Rios first.

Marquez, meanwhile, hasn’t fought since his May 2014 win over Mike Alvarado. Unless he steps back in the ring pretty soon after recovering from an injury, he could be nearing two years out of the ring by the time a Pacquiao fight happens. Their rivalry is well known: a draw in their first fight, close decisions for Pacquiao in the second and third, a decisive one-punch knockout for Marquez in the fourth, entertainment each time around. A fifth fight would complete their series and their careers.

There are a couple of other dark horse candidates for Pacquiao’s supposed farewell: Lucas Matthysse, who is coming off a knockout loss to Viktor Postol in early October, and Ruslan Provodnikov, whose last appearance was a close decision loss to Matthysse in April. Either could make for an enjoyable outing and a fresh pairing for Pacquiao, who is assumed to be dropping back down toward junior welterweight after being at welterweight these past several years.

Provodnikov, too, used to be with Roach and has recently parted. He was also supposed to be appearing on Showtime in November, though a fight couldn’t be made for the network and he will be staying busy instead on a Nov. 7 card in Monte Carlo, Monaco. He would presumably be contractually able to face Pacquiao should the opportunity come available, though he also couldn’t be blamed for taking other fights instead rather than resorting to waiting and hoping.

Ideally, Crawford wouldn’t go immediately to Pacquiao without continuing to establish himself at 140 first. But the reality is that Pacquiao may soon be gone. Crawford is skilled enough to pose a far more significant challenge than did a couple of other recent Pacquiao victims, Rios and Chris Algieri. And given that Top Rank is trying to build Crawford’s stardom, a Pacquiao fight may be a vehicle to help get him there.

It certainly won’t be Crawford’s mouth that does it. While he engaged in a little retaliatory trash talk after his Jean win, he’s never going to rile people up the way that Adrien Broner does and Mayweather did. He’s also not going to be as charismatic as other, more outgoing fighters are. Crawford draws attention largely with his talent.

It’s a shame we won’t see his talent in against a couple of the other notable junior welterweights, Adrien Broner and Rances Barthelemy, who are with Haymon. Additional Haymon guys, longtime 140-pound stalwarts Danny Garcia and Lamont Peterson, have moved up to 147.

Postol, who like Crawford is with Top Rank, may soon owe a fight against mandatory challenger Amir Imam. Crawford-Postol would be a difficult fight for both, and given how defensively skilled both are, it may be difficult on the eyes as well. (That’s also why we wouldn’t see Crawford against Cesar Cuenca, who is a pure boxer but who is an unknown commodity among mainstream fight fans.) It’s more likely that the promoter will keep Crawford and Postol apart for as long as it can, rather than unify the belts and diminish the paydays that come with having two titleholders instead of one.

Crawford-Matthysse would’ve been in the cards had Matthysse not lost to Postol. The Argentine is with Golden Boy Promotions. Fights between Top Rank and Golden Boy fighters once would’ve been impossible when the two promoters were at odds. Once Golden Boy parted ways with now-former chief executive Richard Schaefer, Golden Boy subsequently lost a huge swath of its stable that is with Haymon.

Matthysse-Postol was one such Top Rank/Golden Boy show made possible by the way business now stands. Crawford-Matthysse could still happen even if it means less than it otherwise would have. Crawford-Provodnikov would also be intriguing. Yet the fact that Crawford-Provodnikov — and other bouts between Provodnikov and Top Rank boxers — hadn’t already happened is probably why “The Siberian Rocky” was looking toward Showtime.

Other 140-pounders are in Top Rank’s and Golden Boy’s stables, but they for now are prospects and not yet contenders.

As for Crawford, there’s a tremendous difference between where he was at the beginning of 2013 and where he’ll be as 2016 rolls in. He’s no longer a relative unknown on untelevised undercards.

One thing now is reminiscent of then, however. The Prescott fight wouldn’t have come if not for fortune. A Pacquiao fight won’t bring him fortune unless circumstances smile upon him once again.

Only then will one of the best in the sport right now get a chance to face one of the best ever.

The 10 Count will return soon.

“Fighting Words” appears every Monday on BoxingScene.com. Pick up a copy of David’s book, “Fighting Words: The Heart and Heartbreak of Boxing,” at http://bit.ly/fightingwordsamazon or internationally at http://bit.ly/fightingwordsworldwide . Send questions/comments via email at fightingwords1@gmail.com