Their rise has also, unsurprisingly, affected their dating life. Studbudz fans are legion; At games last year, I often noticed pink hair in the stands, as well as a reassuring homemade “Here 4 the Studbudz” sign at the Liberty-Lynx game. Hiedeman signed at least one breast. “It was a lot of movement,” Williams says.
“Don’t ask Courtney!” Hiedeman intervenes, laughing. “(These girls) will come to Courtney. brave. They want her harm.”
Williams smiles. She’s single and having a good time. “It won’t be like this forever,” she says. “I might as well enjoy it while I’m at it.”
“Am I lonely?” — Hiedeman says thoughtfully. “I’m leaving the market.”
– So you are not alone! Williams says, laughing. “If you’re out of the market, it means you’re not alone. You’re in a relationship.”
“Treat it however you want, world,” Hiedeman says.
“She’s in a relationship and I’m single,” Williams offers. “For all the girls who want to know.”
Their banter reminds me of something Whitmore noted when we talked about the rise of Stadbudz. “They truly are who they are,” she said. “What you see is what you get from them. When it comes to basketball, they both take it very seriously, and it shows in the way they play and the way they practice. But you can’t live seriously all the time. There has to be some comic relief. They are sincere in their work; they are sincere in their sense of humor; they are sincere in the way they live, period.”
In this era of professional women’s sports, much is necessarily based on the fight for equality, for better treatment, better pay, better opportunities. WNBA players regularly receive death threats as well as racist and homophobic attacks, and in addition to their work as athletes, they are expected to regularly stand up and speak out for much more. Studbudz are closed for this reason, but they are also a refreshing reminder that great female athletes can be a lot of fun too. Especially when they are allowed to be themselves.
“The best thing is when someone just comes up to you and says, ‘Oh, you have no idea what you’ve done to my relationship with me and my daughter,'” Hiedeman says. “It’s crazy because you don’t realize it when we’re just broadcasting. We’re just talking. You don’t think about how much (it) impacts and what you’re actually doing for people.”
Hiedeman has found success in Seattle, where she is averaging career averages in her first season as a starter. “I’m really just enjoying my time here and enjoying it, enjoying my teammates,” Hiedeman said. “Now I just miss my friend a little more. That’s all.”
Williams, who will play in her third All-Star game in Chicago this weekend, says the plan is to keep the Stadiumbirds alive, even if they never end up on the same team again. “I want our All-Star Weekend to be like Streaming University,” she says. “We can’t broadcast as much as we did when we were on the same team, (but) it’s something people look forward to every year. No matter what we do during our breaks, we know we can always turn on All Star Weekend and people can see it from the inside. So hopefully (it will be) more and more.”