PLAYA VISTA TODAY
Lifestyle magazine for LA's Westside
Lifestyle magazine for LA's Westside
The Ultimate Experience of Living in Playa Vista
Sports
Playa Vista Softball
Are you ready for some softball??
The Playa Vista Softball League Spring Season will begin late March.
Co-ed teams are forming now!!
Open to ALL levels.
Come have fun with your neighbors!!
To sign up or for more details email Stephan at:
kmeceo@hotmail.com
Are you ready for some softball??
The Playa Vista Softball League Spring Season will begin late March.
Co-ed teams are forming now!!
Open to ALL levels.
Come have fun with your neighbors!!
To sign up or for more details email Stephan at:
kmeceo@hotmail.com
Nikki Caldwell is building her private Los Angeles in and around Playa Vista. As UCLA Women's Basketball coach, she seeks to raise UCLA women’s game.
The coach leads the Bruins, who finished second in the Pacific 10 Conference, into the league’s tournament.
UCLA Coach Nikki Caldwell has led the Bruins to a second-place finish in the Pacific 10 Conference, a 15-3 record in league play and 12 wins in their last 13 games to earn a No. 2 seeding in the Pac-10 tournament.
from US Presswire
Nikki Caldwell is building her private Los Angeles in and around Playa Vista. There is her cafe around the corner, the lunch spot where the servers know her name, the gym where she has kickboxing class, her bowling alley, her movie theater, and so on.
"I'm from a small town," the UCLA women's basketball coach said. "So I've got to make L.A. a little smaller."
She's two years into it since being hired, but she's getting comfortable. The same goes with her team. That's the difference between last year and this year, we are more comfortable with each other," she said.
That partly explains the Bruins' success this season: a second-place finish in the Pacific 10 Conference, a 15-3 record in league play and 12 wins in their last 13 games to earn a No. 2 seeding in the State Farm Pac-10 women's tournament, which begins Thursday at the Galen Center. (UCLA opens on Friday, meeting the winner of Thursday's Washington-Oregon State game.)
Another aspect is improved inside play, behind newcomer forwards Jasmine Dixon and Markel Walker, who combine to average 26.2 points and 15.5 rebounds. "It's given us a whole new dimension," Caldwell said.
Caldwell comes from success, having played and been an assistant coach at Tennessee under legendary Coach Pat Summitt. "I've been exposed to it, so I have a hunger for it," she said.
She uses many of Summitt's techniques, sometimes quoting her word for word. She'll tell her players they're underdogs. She'll use inspirational quotes to theme practices. And if a player is lacking enthusiasm or isn't communicating well, she'll send her home.
"If she thinks you should be at a certain level, that's what she's going to set it at and you're going to have to go from there," Dixon said. The success she wants takes time. At Tennessee, women's basketball has an enormous fan base. Here, Caldwell competes for attention with night life, the beach, professional teams and other college teams. At Tennessee, recruits of the highest caliber could be signed from any state. Here, Caldwell struggles to sign the best from California.
Last year, when UCLA failed to make the NCAA tournament, Caldwell was sick. She had never been home for spring break and vowed never to be there again. "You either have spring break and we're playing or you're having spring break with me," she told her players. Even opposing coaches have encouraged her.
"We want them to be a national power, so to speak, just to shift the balance from the East Coast more to the West Coast," said Tara VanDerveer, coach of top-seeded Stanford. Caldwell is trying. Landing Walker, a McDonald's All-American, was a significant step.
Recruiting should be a strength, because the coach's Southern charm literally radiates. She was raised in Oak Ridge, Tenn., population about 27,000, and tells people her hometown was a main research site for the Manhattan Project, which created the atomic bomb. There is still a plant there, she adds, that manufactures and stores nuclear weapons.
"Dim the lights, I may glow a little bit," she said, laughing. UCLA is shining with her.
The coach leads the Bruins, who finished second in the Pacific 10 Conference, into the league’s tournament.
UCLA Coach Nikki Caldwell has led the Bruins to a second-place finish in the Pacific 10 Conference, a 15-3 record in league play and 12 wins in their last 13 games to earn a No. 2 seeding in the Pac-10 tournament.
from US Presswire
Nikki Caldwell is building her private Los Angeles in and around Playa Vista. There is her cafe around the corner, the lunch spot where the servers know her name, the gym where she has kickboxing class, her bowling alley, her movie theater, and so on.
"I'm from a small town," the UCLA women's basketball coach said. "So I've got to make L.A. a little smaller."
She's two years into it since being hired, but she's getting comfortable. The same goes with her team. That's the difference between last year and this year, we are more comfortable with each other," she said.
That partly explains the Bruins' success this season: a second-place finish in the Pacific 10 Conference, a 15-3 record in league play and 12 wins in their last 13 games to earn a No. 2 seeding in the State Farm Pac-10 women's tournament, which begins Thursday at the Galen Center. (UCLA opens on Friday, meeting the winner of Thursday's Washington-Oregon State game.)
Another aspect is improved inside play, behind newcomer forwards Jasmine Dixon and Markel Walker, who combine to average 26.2 points and 15.5 rebounds. "It's given us a whole new dimension," Caldwell said.
Caldwell comes from success, having played and been an assistant coach at Tennessee under legendary Coach Pat Summitt. "I've been exposed to it, so I have a hunger for it," she said.
She uses many of Summitt's techniques, sometimes quoting her word for word. She'll tell her players they're underdogs. She'll use inspirational quotes to theme practices. And if a player is lacking enthusiasm or isn't communicating well, she'll send her home.
"If she thinks you should be at a certain level, that's what she's going to set it at and you're going to have to go from there," Dixon said. The success she wants takes time. At Tennessee, women's basketball has an enormous fan base. Here, Caldwell competes for attention with night life, the beach, professional teams and other college teams. At Tennessee, recruits of the highest caliber could be signed from any state. Here, Caldwell struggles to sign the best from California.
Last year, when UCLA failed to make the NCAA tournament, Caldwell was sick. She had never been home for spring break and vowed never to be there again. "You either have spring break and we're playing or you're having spring break with me," she told her players. Even opposing coaches have encouraged her.
"We want them to be a national power, so to speak, just to shift the balance from the East Coast more to the West Coast," said Tara VanDerveer, coach of top-seeded Stanford. Caldwell is trying. Landing Walker, a McDonald's All-American, was a significant step.
Recruiting should be a strength, because the coach's Southern charm literally radiates. She was raised in Oak Ridge, Tenn., population about 27,000, and tells people her hometown was a main research site for the Manhattan Project, which created the atomic bomb. There is still a plant there, she adds, that manufactures and stores nuclear weapons.
"Dim the lights, I may glow a little bit," she said, laughing. UCLA is shining with her.
For Immediate Release,
Dunleavy Sever Ties
Tuesday, March 9, 2010 - 5:25 pm (PT)
The following is a statement from the Los Angeles Clippers:
The Los Angeles Clippers and General Manager Mike Dunleavy today have severed ties. Dunleavy previously also served as the team’s head coach from 2003-04 until February 4, 2010, when he resigned as head coach.
The organization has determined that the goal of building a winning team is best served by making this decision at this time. The team has simply not made sufficient progress during Dunleavy’s seven-year tenure. The Clippers want to win now. This transition, in conjunction with a full commitment to dedicate unlimited resources, is designed to accomplish that objective.
Neil Olshey, presently the Clippers’ Assistant General Manager, will assume the duties created by Dunleavy’s departure. He joined the organization as Director of Player Development for the 2003-04 season. He served as an Assistant Coach in 2004-05, and was elevated to the position of Director of Player Personnel from 2005-06 through 2007-08. He assumed the role of Assistant General Manager prior to the start of the 2008-09 season.
Olshey has played an important role in the completion of several significant team transactions, including the deals which brought Marcus Camby, Craig Smith, Rasual Butler, Steve Blake, Travis Outlaw, and Drew Gooden to the Clippers, among others. He also played a integral part in administering all preparation for the Clippers’ last four NBA Drafts, which produced Al Thornton, Eric Gordon, DeAndre Jordan, and last year’s #1 overall pick, Blake Griffin.
cycling
Their rides change from week to week, so it is suggested you join BOTH LISTS so that you will not miss a ride Westside list
A place where everyone with a bike in Playa Vista can talk and plan rides for all abilities ages and desires. There are two lists to sign up: Playa Vista list
basketball
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