CLEVELAND, Ohio -- These days, the closest Don Nelson gets to games on the road is when he travels to the mainland to visit family and happens to take in some hoops. The NBA's all-time winningest coach spends the bulk of his time on Maui, retired and relaxing.

Occasionally, however, Nellie can be coaxed into reminiscing, too. About the times when he coached the Dallas Mavericks, for instance, when he led the team to a record amount of road victories in back-to-back seasons (2001-2002). Or when he played for the Boston Celtics 1965-76 and won five NBA titles, picking up tricks on how to win anywhere.

With the Cavaliers sitting at a measly 2-15 on the road this season, and their big West Coast road trip beginning Friday, any advice is likely welcome – even if Nellie contends it's not rocket science.

"I always preached to the team to take care of the details more on the road," Nelson said during a brief interlude before catching a game in San Antonio coached by good pal Gregg Popovich. 'You just couldn't expect any breaks on the road. You had to do everything more perfectly and more focused on the road. Which is pretty easy to do, actually."

Easy, supposedly, because there are fewer demands from home life, and more time to focus on the game and the business of winning.

When Nellie was a player, his legendary carefree attitude worked in his favor. He didn't fret about his team's road record or how to change his style on the road. He had other concerns.

"We drank more beer," Nelson joked. "We had more fun on the road because you didn't have to worry about home life and all that kind of stuff. You were out amongst your friends so that was always fun."

When he coached, however, it was different. Whether in his stops in Milwaukee, Golden State, New York or Dallas, all of which included zany innovations such as the point forward or 7-foot-7 Manute Bol taking 3-pointers with regularity,

"As a coach I probably didn't take as many risks," Nelson said. "Maybe I didn't go to my bench quite as much, played the vets more.

"Young players just make more mistakes than the veterans. Mistakes hurt you more on the road than they do at home. You can rise above them at home because you have other positives going for you."

Which leads back to Cavaliers coach Mike Brown's long-preached sermon that Cleveland needs to buckle down on defense on the road, above all else. A steady defense can remain consistent, while offense can turn streaky when affected by boisterous rival crowds.

Then again, there's one factor that can work in a team's favor on the road above all else.

"The better your players, of course, the easier it is to win anywhere," Nelson reminded.

And there might not be any shortcuts to finding road success. Any tricks the 73-year-old Nellie learned over the years aren't the kind he's willing to spill now, in his retirement.

"I know a lot of good stories about the road," Nellie joked, "but I don't want to share them with you."

Fair enough.