ESPN NBA

This story appears in the May 18 issue of ESPN The Magazine.

Your team's in the playoffs, trying to steal a W in your opponent's house. The crowd is rowdy and vicious, attacking you, your teammates and even your mother with howls and rally rags and those damn ThunderStix. But you're prepared. You've stuck to your routine -- a nap (thanks to that block on your hotel phone) and cards with teammates -- plus, you know your game plan cold and are ready for anything.

Of course, rising above the din is easier said than done. Take the Lakers. Postseason since 1975, they are only 87–99 on the road -- 12 games under .500 and tops in the NBA -- but that's helped them win eight rings. The road always finds a way to draw blood, with a late-night fire alarm, a sketchy cheeseburger or a fan who baits your coach into tossing a water bottle into the stands. Still, any team that hopes to hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy must sharpen its road survival skills. Here, players and those closest to them tell us how it's done.

When you're done here, be sure to check out our corresponding NHL road coverage.

Travelers' Checks

Zohar Lazar

NBA pros play on the road all season long. But tight travel schedules and pressure to win make the playoffs a different kind of road trip. We wondered what players have loved and loathed about leaving home behind, so we asked.

Drew Gooden
Spurs (0–2 on the road; lost first round in five games)
"The United Center has tight rims, and the shallow angle of the seats behind the backboards creates depth perception issues. You gotta be careful. Of course, the Bulls know about those little secrets."

Shane Battier
Rockets (1–2; won first round in six)
"Discipline is key to winning on the road. When the fans get into it and the other team's on a 10-0 run, you have to execute. Every championship team has amazing discipline."

Daniel Gibson
Cavaliers (2–0; won first round in four)
"At the Boston Garden, the crowd is right on top of you. It has a different feel, and it's a tough place to win."

Road Mates

Layne Murdoch/NBAE/Getty Images

Some players pack more than sports gear when they hit the road. Hornets center Tyson Chandler brings his family, and wife Kimberly tells why. (As told to Ric Bucher)

"I went with him this year to the first two games in Denver because five days on the road is a long stretch. I never want to be a distraction, just keep him company. The way we work it, when we're on the road, that's his time. On a nongame day he'll go to practice, then we'll have lunch, walk around the mall, see a movie, get dinner, then lights out. It's not that glamorous. On game day, it's all about keeping everything calm. If the kids are with us, they know what it means when we say 'Daddy is working.' Last year we took the whole family to San Antonio for the second round, just to keep the family together. Our daughter, Sacha, was 2, and I was pregnant with Tyson II. We got a second room for the kids and a nanny, so when Tyson needed to rest or get ready for the game, he could. The whole idea is to make Tyson as comfortable as possible, because the games are physically and mentally draining enough. Being on the road gets boring and lonely. We're there to make it feel a little more like home."

Big Number: .164

The Staples Experience is a lot of things: late-arriving crowd, "I Love LA," courtside celebs. It's also the NBA's most inhospitable host during playoffs. Since Staples opened, in 1999, visitors have won just 16% (12–61) of games -- and that's Lakers and Clips. By comparison, the Oilers' Rexall Place is the NHL's toughest home sheet; visitors there have notched a 32.6% (42–87) win rate since Edmonton's postseason debut, in 1980.

Contributors: Sam Alipour, Lindsay Berra, Chris Broussard, Ric Bucher, Bryan Chu, Louise K. Cornetta and Charles Curtis