They were the first mega-hyped teenage athletes of the Internet age. And when I say mega-hyped, it’s only because I cannot find an adjective that comes close to capturing the preposterous expectations heaped upon Sidney Crosby and LeBron James.
Shoot, they might have been the two most hyped athletes in the history of organized sports.
Sid was doing interviews at age 7. He was labeled the next Wayne Gretzky — by Wayne Gretzky — at 15. He was a shirtless GQ cover boy a month into his NHL career (under the headline: “Meet Hockey’s Answer to LeBron James”).