15 Superstar Athletes That '90s Kids Loved

What do you think you're doing? Don't shy away from that light. Had you grew up in the 1990s, you would have realized that wasn't actually a light. No, it was actually the shine blaring off Carlos Valderrama's shocking blond Afro.

Let's be honest, the 1990s were the best. The video game industry was pumping out classics, MTV was still playing music videos and Tamagotchis were the prequel to Apple's mobile array of apps and games.

Speaking in terms of sports, the '90s were filled with athletes we all could cheer for. You know, people who really defined their respective sports. The same as any other decade, kids growing up worshipped these stars.

With so many names to pick and choose from, we finally landed on 15 athletes that kids from the '90s adored.

Ken Griffey Jr.

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Ken Griffey Jr. was the ultimate '90s player. You can have Pedro Martinez, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire and Brady Anderson. True '90s kids will take Griffey Jr. 10 times out of 10.

Griffey represents everything great about that decade. He was charismatic, unstoppable at times and he was even represented by the great Nike.

With a perfect swing at his disposal, Junior played 22 years in the big leagues. Even with a lengthy career to bode, he will always be remembered for his days with the Seattle Mariners and Cincinnati Reds.

Between those two clubs, Griffey slugged 627 of his 630 career home runs. He made 13 All-Star teams and won 10 Golden Gloves thanks to the good work he put in. Junior also managed to make the Reds uniform the coolest in all of sports when he first landed there in 2000.

The icing on the cake for Griffey was his deal with Nike. Anyone who grew up in the '90s will testify under oath that other than owning a pair of LA Gear shoes, Nike was the only way to go.

At one point the brand had Michael Jordan, Bo Jackson and Griffey Jr. on its roster.

Kind of like eating Dunkaroos or rushing home from school to get some Animaniacs in, owning a pair of Junior's signature kicks was a part of life. If you don't remember these shoes, Ian Stonebrook of NiceKicks.com wrote a great piece on his Nike legacy.

Not sold on Griffey's '90s significance yet? Maybe it's time you fired back up the Nintendo 64 and jammed out to this classic.

Barry Sanders

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Barry Sanders was the face of the Detroit Lions franchise for 10 seasons. Leaving Oklahoma State in 1989, he was drafted No. 3 overall.

Did you know the hypertalented tailback never ran for less than 1,100 yards in a single season? Seriously, it's true. To this day he's probably the best pure runner the game of football has ever seen.

Sanders' highlights are something else. His vision was flawless and once he got going, no one could come close to stopping him.

What turned Sanders into such a fan favorite was that style of rushing. His footwork made him the Sugar Ray Robinson or Muhammad Ali of the NFL. Watching him plow into the line of scrimmage, then emerge untouched before taking it 30 yards down the field was what SportsCenter was built for.

You weren't a true '90s kids unless you were a fan of No. 20. Sorry, but that's a fact.

Penny Hardaway

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Michael Jordan was king during the '90s. Everyone knows that. That being said, there still were plenty of NBA stars with a ton of clout.

Orlando Magic guard Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway was one of those names. Hardaway was part of an adroit Magic team. Alongside Shaquille O'Neal and Dennis Scott, those three guys did some special things for the city of Orlando.

You might not remember, but Hardaway was actually drafted third overall by the Golden State Warriors in 1993. He was then swapped for Chris Webber—the Magic's original No. 1 pick that year—and three first-round selections down the road.

Penny was explosive. The athletic prowess he developed at the University of Memphis carried over immediately into the league.

Before his career was damaged because of knee injuries, Penny was one of the top players of the '90s. In six wild seasons with the Magic he averaged 19.0 points, 6.3 assists and 4.7 rebounds per game.

Hardaway's brand expanded off the court as well. His deal with Nike produced some great signature shoes. To this day the Air Penny 1 is one of the best looking pair of basketball kicks ever designed.

What really launched Penny into '90s stardom had to be his Nike ads featuring "Lil Penny." Voiced by Chris Rock, "Lil Penny" became an instant hit.

Penny Hardaway in those sleek Magic pinstripes is a memory NBA fans won't ever forget. He's one of the all-time best when it comes to athletes who played in the decade of Bill Clinton and The Simpsons.

Andre Agassi

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It's hard to imagine a tennis star being as captivating as Andre Agassi was.

His rambunctious outfits, whirlwind style of play and classic '90s hair made him a popular name. Essentially Agassi was a rock star on the court.

Pete Sampras may have finished with the more decorated career, but Agassi's name holds just as much clout among '90s babies.

When you're young it's tough not to root for the flashiest players. That flash was what pushed Agassi into the hearts of kids everywhere.

Nike fell in love with the tennis icon, so they signed him to a sponsorship deal. Up from the waters of that creative partnership, Agassi's signature shoes were born. Complex.com's Nick Engvall's look back at the top models from Nike's collaboration with Agassi over the years is a real trip down memory lane.

Agassi is a part of the '90s. His Nike commercial with the Red Hot Chili Peppers sums up his aura perfectly.

Shaquille O'Neal

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Earlier we spoke about Penny Hardaway. It would be a crime not to include former teammate Shaquille O'Neal as well.

Shaq is one of the most recognizable basketball players to ever step on an NBA floor. Michael Jordan is the greatest player ever, but the 7'1" center who played his college ball at LSU could be the most dominate.

O'Neal never had the buttery post moves like Hakeem Olajuwon. Doesn't matter. Because what O'Neal did was flat-out crush people in the post. He was one of the strongest big men the league has ever seen.

Defining O'Neal as a player isn't easy, but one word that consistently comes to mind is brutal.

O'Neal was like a battering ram in the paint. He flew to the hoop. Four seasons with the Magic resulted in an average of 27.2 points, 12.5 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game.

Then in July 1996, O'Neal fled Orlando to become the next great center in Los Angeles Lakers history. The great Mark Heisler, who was writing for the Los Angeles Times at the time, said the organization "hit the Shaqpot."

The Lakers got one of the very best. He would reward the team with three NBA championships.

Shaq was also a pop culture lord. He starred in movies, released albums and even had a sweet sneaker deal lined up with Reebok.

Between all of the great things he did wearing a Magic and Lakers jersey, Shaq made sure he'd never be forgotten.

Terrell Davis

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The Denver Broncos' back-to-back Super Bowl wins in 1997 and 1998 were a result of great players and great coaching.

John Elway will always get a ton of credit for leading Denver's heroic postseason charge, but without running back Terrell Davis, it wouldn't have made it there.

Davis scampered his way to 1,750 yards on the ground in '97 and a league-leading 15 rushing TDs. The year after that, he topped that total, rushing for 2,008 yards and 21 TDs.

That two-year run is as a good as it gets. He prospered off that one-cut, zone-blocking offense Mike Shanahan and his crew installed.

Watching TD highlights will put things back into perspective. Had you forgotten about No. 30, this video will remind you of his greatness. In that clip, Davis' former teammate Shannon Sharpe brought up one of the most slept-on elements of his game: "Great balance."

Young folks today may not remember TD. But had you grown up watching football in the '90s, you will never forget what he did for the Broncos.

Grant Hill

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College basketball isn't the same as it was during the late '80s and '90s. The mantra of the "one-and-done" players didn't seem as prevalent back then.

Because of that, we saw some really excellent, cohesive teams come forward. Whether you love or hate them, Duke has always been one of those programs.

Hill was part of one of the top teams in the school's illustrious history. He played four years in a Blue Devils uniform, spanning from 1990-94. Under coach Mike Krzyzewski, Hill helped Duke capture two consecutive national championships in '91 and '92.

When he left all of the comforts that Durham, North Carolina, had to offer, he was drafted third overall by the Detroit Pistons.

Hill's experience and growth as a player while under Coach K's watch helped him from the start of his NBA career. His average of 19.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game was good enough to earn him Rookie of the Year honors along with Dallas Mavericks point guard Jason Kidd.

Because of all the special things he did at Duke and the instant impact he had in the NBA, Hill became immensely popular among fans.

Shuffling through the old newspaper archives on Google, it came to light that because of his popularity, Hill was the first rookie to lead all NBA players during All-Star voting.

It's more than a shame that Hill's pro career was defused by an ankle injury. At least all of us '90s kids got to watch him do his thing for six seasons in Detroit.

Deion Sanders

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What do you know about "Prime Time" Deion Sanders? He's the most electrifying man in all of sports not named Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

Deion was the best. He was arrogant, fast as can be and unbelievably good at what he did. Before Darrelle Revis was everyone's favorite mercenary cornerback, there was Deion.

Atlanta was his first stop as a professional football player in 1989. There he was a Jheri curl-rocking, gold chain-wearing villain of sorts.

Sanders' appeal came down to how brilliant and calculated he was. A top-notch cornerback and phenomenal return man is hard to come by—Patrick Peterson is the closest thing we have in today's NFL and he isn't on the same plateau as Sanders was.

When Deion became a free agent in 1994, that's where he began to push the boundaries of his popularity on and off the field.

Per this vintage Los Angeles Times article by Bill Plaschke, Sanders was signed to a one-year deal so that the 49ers could cope with the almighty Dallas Cowboys.

He won a Super Bowl title with the Niners that season before jumping ship and joining the Cowboys a year later. Sanders would go on to win another ring with Dallas before signing with Washington at the start of Y2K.

Deion is a marvel. He's not only one of the top cornerbacks of all time, but he made serious waves with Nike and even dropped an album.

Why was Deion so popular? There's no set answer. But if I'm taking bets, it "Must Be the Money."

Ronaldo

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Cristiano Ronaldo may be the current champion of soccer. But before Cristiano was with Real Madrid, there was another Ronaldo who reigned supreme. This Ronaldo went by one name and he was a Brazilian icon.

During his time with Brazil's national team, Ronaldo helped guide that squad to three World Cup finals, winning two along the way. He also has the second-most goals scored in the tournament's history, trailing Miroslav Klose of Germany, per FIFA.com.

He played for several pro clubs in the '90s, before joining Real Madrid in 2002. Kids who played soccer in the '90s were infatuated with Ronaldo. He scored goals and made it look so easy.

Again, this was before social media took over the world. So whenever you got the chance to see Ronaldo on the international stage, you made sure not to miss it.

Wayne Gretzky

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Sporting the one hockey number every '90s kid wanted—No. 99—Wayne Gretzky was a marquee player who helped brand the sport.

By the time the '90s rolled around, "The Great One" was playing for the Los Angeles Kings. He was a commercial sensation who had already dominated the sport in the '80s across the border playing for the Edmonton Oilers.

Gretzky's time in Los Angeles helped put hockey on the map in the United States. Thrust into one of the biggest media markets on the planet, Gretzky overwhelmed fans with his puck handling and machinelike way of scoring goals.

His eight seasons with the Kings produced 246 goals and 672 assists. It wasn't quite the numbers he put up with the Oilers, but that didn't matter. Gretzky was the most sought-after hockey star in the world.

Those of us who blared Puff Daddy's No Way Out album won't remember Gretzky's one-year stay with the St. Louis Blues outside of having a trading card or two with him rocking that uniform.

But everyone remembers his final stop with the New York Rangers. Bouncing from Los Angeles to New York—minus the layover in St. Louis—kept Gretzky's star burning.

Without that move, we never would have enjoyed the classic video game Wayne Gretzky's 3D Hockey—to this day it's still one of the best hockey games ever devised.

Gretzky was so good that you didn't even have to be a fan of the teams he played for in the '90s in order to appreciate all that he did.

Emmitt Smith

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Today's batch of young NFL fans see the Dallas Cowboys in a completely different light than everyone in the '90s did.

Now we have a lot of stars—Tony Romo, DeMarco Murray, Dez Bryant—but no titles to show for it. The "Tony Romo can't win the big game" narrative existed, as well as all of Jerry Jones' antics from the owner's box.

Getting real Back to the Future "DeLorean with smoking wheels" about the issue, the Cowboys in the '90s were sports royalty. They won Super Bowl titles in '92, '93 and '95.

They had Deion Sanders, Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin and the almighty Emmitt Smith.

Smith is the best running back in franchise history. He's also the NFL's all-time leading rusher. Behind that big Cowboys offensive line, he ran through NFL defenses for years, punishing oncoming tackles.

What made Smith so good was he was consistent. Besides his rookie season, where he ran for 937 yards, he never was held under 1,000 yards rushing in the '90s. That type of consistency is rare for a running back.

Summing up his brilliance, NFL Media analyst Elliot Harrison said, "In one five-year span, Smith won four rushing titles, three Super Bowls, one NFL MVP and one Super Bowl MVP."

To say it was hard to stay off the bandwagon as kids in the '90s would be a gross understatement. With the Cowboys going full throttle, Smith was a popular man.

The New World Order

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Wrestling was everything in the '90s. Before spoilers leaked on the Internet and athletes developed Twitter personalities, kids couldn't get enough of this stuff.

World Championship Wrestling's feud with the World Wrestling Federation—now known as World Wrestling Entertainment—provided fans with some of the best storylines and matches we've ever seen.

As the war raged on, some of the most memorable characters in wrestling history were created. The New World Order, known mostly as the NWO, was the very best of the bunch.

When Scott Hall and Kevin Nash revealed Hulk Hogan as the third member of the NWO during 1996's Bash at the Beach pay-per-view, wrestling changed forever.

Viewers of the WCW brand were introduced to a realism of sorts. They were introduced to a place where bad guys were cool.

The NWO, armed with their black and white colors, changed the face of entertainment. Without those guys we never would have seen D-Generation X hit the shores of WWE.

Before the NWO ballooned and split into different cliques, the group made for some riveting television. You couldn't put the remote down when Hogan, Nash and Hall were being showered by garbage from the livid fans watching starry-eyed in the rafters. 

Brett Favre

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Before we all had to suffer through Brett Favre's indecisiveness, he was the quintessential '90s quarterback. Kids who loved the '90s will remember Favre for being a tough gunslinger who never missed a game as the leader of the Green Bay Packers.

No. 4's face was plastered all over the periodicals as he led the Lambeau faithful to a Super Bowl victory. On top of the records he set, under Favre's watch the Packers suffered only one losing season.

Before he was endorsing male grooming products, Favre was on the cover of NFL Quarterback Club 98. Does anyone remember that game? It was all sorts of awful.

Favre was a football player through and through. He talked like one, played like one and won like one. They sure don't make QBs like the rocket arm from Gulfport, Mississippi, anymore.

Jerry Rice

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Jerry Rice's career with the San Francisco 49ers started in 1985. And from that point on we got to witness the greatest wide receiver in NFL history win three Super Bowls with two different quarterbacks.

Rice's connection with Joe Montana and Steve Young was part of the life in the NFL. Whenever NFL Films would distribute their look-back videos, the 49ers always seemed to be a big part of it.

The 13-time Pro Bowler was the heart and soul of the Niners. He caught 1,281 balls for 19,427 yards and 176 touchdowns in his 16-year stay in San Francisco.

Growing up, everyone pretended to be Rice playing football in their backyard. He was simply that good.

The craziest part is, a lot of his production came before the NFL was dubbed a "passing league." Just look at Joe Montana's numbers. The man never threw for over 4,000 yards in a season. Current Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford has already done it four times in six years.

There won't ever be another Jerry Rice. For all of the great things he accomplished, Nike even released a commemorative shoe in his honor in 2014.

Michael Jordan

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Don't act surprised. You all knew we were going to end up here.

The '90s were defined by Michael Jordan. Jordan won championships, Jordan won MVP awards, heck, Jordan even tried his hand at baseball before he came back and broke out the No. 45 on the hardwood.

Michael was dominating at a time when the NBA was full of stars and physical play.

Besides his sneaker deal with Nike, the evolution of Jordan Brand and his six NBA titles, Jordan starred in Space Jam. The significance of that outweighs anything else he's achieved.

Let's say you could have only one piece of literature, film or music to remember the '90s by. It would have to be Space Jam, right?

Everyone wanted to be like Mike, and for good reason. Jordan's allure is right there with Legends of the Hidden Temple, Pogs and neighbors who hid their faces behind fences.

Unless noted otherwise, all game scores, stats and information courtesy of Sports-Reference.com.