The StudBudz (Natisha Hiedeman and Courtney Williams) have exploded in popularity since the creation of their Twitch Channel and Livestream in May 2025. Back then, they were teammates on the Minnesota Lynx’s roster. They would stream during off days, during their road trips, and most famously during All-Star Weekend, where they hosted a 72-hour event.
Like any YouTuber or Twitch Streamer, it’s all about personality, and Hiedeman and Williams are excellent in that regard. But it’s also about community engagement. Something that Twitch exemplifies with its online chat rooms. It allows fans to feel they’re truly part of the group. And it gives them a unique opportunity to interact with their favorite celebrities/athletes. As of this writing, the duo has nearly 120,000 followers on Twitch. They have over 160,000 followers on Instagram.
While the StudBudz remain, the two are no longer playing on the same WNBA team. During the offseason, Natisha Hiedeman signed a two-year deal with the Seattle Storm. With her strong play on the court and her fun personality off of it, “T” quickly became a fan favorite in the Pacific Northwest. And she endeared herself to the community early on by admiring the beautiful nature of the region. More specifically, The Mountain.
That would be Mount Rainier for those unfamiliar. The tallest mountain in Washington State stands at more than 14,400 feet. It is also considered one of the most dangerous active volcanoes in the United States. But it’s also a thing of beauty. And something that Natisha fell in love with after moving to Seattle.
Because of the weather in this region, Mount Rainier can “disappear” from time to time. That fact blew Hiedeman’s mind, and she would start asking every day if the mountain was out. Fans loved it, and it became a regular bit early on during the Storm’s season.
As we’re about to enter the final month of the WNBA season, Hiedeman has found another way to endear herself and engage with the community. She has apparently started a Run Club; RunBudz to be exact!
What started as maybe a joke, or just a whim, has become the next big thing in Seattle. On Tuesday evening, I was invited to come to Green Lake and interview Hiedeman alongside other members of the media. What I witnessed was something very cool.
When asked why she started a run club, Hiedeman responded, “Honestly, just sitting at home one day. I’m like, let’s just go for a little run. First one, I think 23 people were there. And then I did another one a couple days later, which is why we’re all here. As you can see, a lot of people here already. We got a little bit of time, so I just want to bring people together, community together, get out, exercise, be outside, have a good time, and I mean, I just think it’s important to get outside and exercise as well.”
There were a lot of people there. It looked to be at least 150-200 people.
T was asked if she enjoyed running.
“I feel like when I did it the first time, we ran 1.55, and it was like, I felt like so accomplished, because I’m not really, y’all know, I’d be sprinting on the court. I never ran like a mile or a mile and a half ever... So I just felt super accomplished after that.”
It’s one thing to want to get out and exercise for one’s own personal gain. But to encourage a large group of people to better themselves is even more impressive. And Natisha really appreciates the love and support she’s received.
“I mean, it’s just exciting. Like, people really showing up for (me) just to be outside, exercise, community together, like, and this is just all for fun. So, I mean, I don’t know, just seeing all these people, it’s like, it’s the support, you know? And I really feel it, and I think that Seattle has embraced me. So to be able to do this here definitely means a lot to me,” Hiedeman shared. “We go out there on the court and try to perform for our fans and for ourselves. So just to come do something off the court and have people show up the same way, I think that’s what matters most because it’s, like, people are seeing you and supporting you more than just the basketball player.”
While she is training to compete with herself, better herself, and potentially run in a marathon one day, there are more important goals in mind with this. It’s about the betterment of others and bringing people together.
“I think that’s just the best part about it. I feel like we’re bringing out people that don’t normally run or don’t normally get outside, but just to be able to come, enjoy each other. Again, we accept all, just walk, walk it if you want to, run it, do whatever, so I just feel like that’s huge because, again, you’re just bringing the community together. And I feel, in a sense, I’m like a connector, so to be able to bring all these people together and connect people, again, that’s what my biggest goal in life, really. So, it’s super special.” Hiedeman told us.
Natisha spoke about her close connection to the Seattle fans and how it happened so quickly.
“I mean, honestly, I would say kind of quick because of the mountain. I feel like that experience in itself, like, seeing the mountain for the first time, and people were kind of making that my thing. I felt super connected right away, but just being outside, going places, people saying, ‘Hey, we love the Storm’, and just, ‘we love you’. I think that being in Seattle, just how much people are around and outside, like, you get that a lot. So it’s, you feel special.”
Building up the community online through Twitch and the chat rooms has allowed T to branch out into these more public community-facing events.
“I just never want to be, like, in a box, so just to be able to do other things and use my platform with basketball, with StudBudz, and streaming, and just being able to go down a whole bunch of different avenues. I mean, who knows what I’ll do next? Like, literally, I would have never imagined this. So who knows? Like, I said, I just like to do what’s on my mind, do what I like, do... I don’t know, I just go with things. But this is gonna be fun for a while.”
That could involve more official events in the future for charities.
“Yeah, so, for now, this is all just for fun, you know? But it would be nice to maybe do… start off with a 5K, and then be able to just do something nice with the money, like, you said, charity. I think that’s the goal right now. For now, I just keep having fun with it, but one day, definitely do something bigger,” she added.
With the larger exposure to the WNBA in recent seasons, with more fans and more opinions, we’ve seen a lot of negativity crop up. Whether that’s race issues between Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese, or Sophie Cunningham and trans rights. Now we’re having former NBA rejects declare for the WNBA Draft, trying to make a mockery of the league. A lot of that has just been hateful rhetoric or trying to create issues where they don’t exist. It can be exhausting, and it’s certainly frustrating. But that’s why I loved witnessing this event. The RunBudz is an example of how the growth of the WNBA can be a positive thing, how it can bring people together, and build a stronger community.
I asked Hiedeman about that.
“Yeah, I feel like, to me, wherever I play, I really try to immerse myself in the community and be a part of the community, because I feel like without our fans and support, and everything, I’m really nothing, you know what I mean? I mean, so just trying to get back into the community, again, people just know me as a basketball player, really. I mean, Twitch has helped people get to know me a little bit more, but to be able to be up close, like this, and personal with people, I feel that’s what I like the most, because they support me. I want to just be able to do something and, you know, kind of support each other in a way.” T said.
And the support isn’t just coming from the fans. At Tuesday’s event, Coach Sonia Raman, Jordan Horston, Taylor Thierry, and Ezi Magbegor all made an appearance to support Hiedeman. During the initial event last week, Zia Cooke and Mackenzie Holmes were there. Natisha spoke on that.
“I mean, our team is super close. Like, on the court, off the court, and I think that’s one thing I can appreciate with our team, even through, like, the struggle of the season, being able to continue to still have fun and show up every single day. I think that goes to the character of a lot of people on this team and just how we show up for each other. So, definitely a lot of support for each other everywhere, on and off the court.”
The Storm’s season may not have turned out the way Hiedeman, fans, and everyone involved would have wanted, but this was an incredible reminder that there is so much more to appreciate in life than just the wins and losses.
Notes:
Photography Credits: Jeff Brown
Thanks to the Seattle Storm and Hiedeman’s team for inviting me to the event.
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Jeff:
Nice article! Between the article and our attending a recent team event, I wondered: Which Storm player would you most want to attend a basketball game with as a fan? Why? A non-basketball sporting event, and why?