The Road Is A Real Trip

The road-versus-home numbers in the NBA are as out of sync as any statistics in sports. Two teams—the Lakers and the Celtics—finished with winning records on the road in 1987-88 season. (The Lakers were 26-15; the Celtics were just 21-20.) All but four of the teams finished with winning records at home. Home teams won 640 games, road teams 303. That's a winning percentage of .679, which is just about the norm over the 42-year history of the league.

How do you fight those kinds of numbers? How do you change? What do you do?

"Nothing," says Layden. "This is great for the league. Every home crowd is happy. You make it so every home team wins every game. Everyone gets in the playoffs, tied with the same record. You set up the brackets, best-of-seven series. Each series goes seven games. You flip a coin to see who hosts the final game."

What's that? Every team wins every home game? Isn't that the way it is now?

Just about.

You could ponder all this, but the hour is late. The game is finished. You'll hurry back to the hotel. You'll stare at the ceiling in your sterile room while your motors continue to run. You'll drift toward sleep for an instant and then awaken with a radio jolt. Dawn. The next bus will be waiting, the next airport, the next game. And the next. And the next.