The road has been very kind

The Lakers wallowed below .500 on the road the last few seasons, as great a reason as any for their overall lack of success.

But times change, 20-year-olds become forces in the middle and All-Star post players are acquired in trades. Now the Lakers are one of the league’s top road teams.

They have won nine of their last 10 away from home and are 21-10 in road games this season with 10 of them remaining. Only Boston and New Orleans have better winning percentages as visitors.

No one is saying the Lakers will close in on the 31-10 road record of the Lakers’ 1999-2000 championship team, but more and more of their fans seem to come out of the woodwork in other cities.

It’s now commonplace to hear “MVP” chants for Kobe Bryant and ovations for Pau Gasol on the road. Even Coby Karl was cheered loudly when he checked in for the final minutes of Sunday’s game at Seattle.

The Lakers seem as comfortable in Charlotte as they do in downtown Los Angeles.

“We’re starting to understand that it doesn’t matter if we play at home or on the road,” Bryant said. “The execution remains the same. I think we’ve been doing a pretty good job of executing and building up some big leads and playing from there.”

The Lakers were 17-24 on the road last season, 18-23 in 2005-06 and 12-29 in 2004-05.

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The Lakers (39-17) are thrilled to own the best record in the Western Conference. Or are they?

“It depends upon who’s No. 8, right?” Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said. “There’s a lot of good teams down there. There’s definitely matchup problems for almost every team that’s in this conference.”

Even Boston forward Kevin Garnett realized the power of the conference during a ragged Celtics trip, telling reporters, “The West is no joke.”

Just the same, Bryant was effusive when asked if the Lakers believed they could compete at a championship level despite the rigors of the West.

“We’re there. We know we can do it,” he said. “It’s not a matter of if. We believe in ourselves. We know what we’re capable of doing.”

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With their 111-91 victory in Seattle, the Lakers improved to 9-4 in the second night of back-to-back situations.

Veteran guard Derek Fisher has some expertise in the area -- he was on the Lakers team that was 19-2 in the second night of back-to-back sets in 1999-2000.

“The first big key that comes to mind is our coaching staff, and their uncanny ability to prepare teams to play physically and mentally without beating you down in the process,” he said. “There’s really a very conscious effort to make sure that we’re fresh and ready to play in the game. That’s where the money’s made. That’s what we all get paid to do, is perform in the game.”

The Lakers’ coaches canceled a shoot-around Sunday morning in Seattle when the team arrived at 2:30 a.m. after its Saturday night victory over the Clippers.

The Lakers looked fresh and rested against the Sonics, taking a 23-point lead in the second quarter and a 31-point lead in the third.

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The results of an MRI exam Monday confirmed forward Vladimir Radmanovic had a strained right calf. The team is listing him as day to day.

TONIGHT

vs. Portland, 7:30, FSN West

Site -- Staples Center.

Radio -- 570, 1330.

Records -- Lakers 39-17, Trail Blazers 29-27.

Record vs. Trail Blazers (2006-07) -- 1-2.

Update -- In a bit of a scheduling quirk, the Lakers have not played the Trail Blazers this season, although four of their final 26 games are against them. Portland played surprisingly well during a 13-game winning streak in December, but it has lost seven of its last eight games. All-Star guard Brandon Roy suffered a sprained right ankle Sunday in Portland’s 112-102 loss to Boston and will not play tonight.

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mike.bresnahan@latimes.com