“Just win, baby!” The words of ex-Oakland Raiders coach, general manager, and owner Al Davis rang true when he first uttered them in 1984. And they’re the most appropriate three words to describe sports betting. While everyone’s favorite bracket-filling event, March Madness, is just a few weeks away, the NBA has been at its best since the All-Star break. The Luka Doncic trade is taking full effect, Steph Curry just scored 56 points, and it appears as if there will be a new first-time MVP. With the purpose of “winning” fresh in the mind, let’s take a look at which teams and players are heeding Davis’ decree — and which are falling miserably short. Best and worst NBA teams ATS Let’s not bury the lede here. The Dallas Mavericks’ unprecedented decision to trade Doncic to their conference rivals has worked out quite well for the Lakers, who are a league-best 16-4 in their last 20 games.  Even more impressively, the purple and gold are 14-6 (70 percent) against the spread during that span with an average performance of +6.3 points against the number. That helped them vault up to the seventh-best team ATS for the year as a whole (55.4 percent). Just above them in fifth are the Detroit Pistons, who are riding their first eight-game win streak since 2008 and who went 7-1 ATS during that stretch. The most profitable team in the league is still the Cleveland Cavaliers, who are running away from the field at 66.7 percent ATS. Anyone who blindly bet $100 on each of their games would be up $1,554.58. The Cavs covered in nine of their last 13 games and have a potential conference finals preview against the Boston Celtics on Friday night. On the opposite end, the Phoenix Suns are wasting away in front of the world’s eyes. Their star trio of Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and Bradley Beal seem to have no cohesion or ability to play at a championship level, which is why they’re a league-worst 20-38-1 (34.5 percent) ATS. Phoenix just lost at home to the 16-43 New Orleans Pelicans and are only 3-9 (25 percent) ATS over their last 12 games.  As disappointing as they’ve been, the San Antonio Spurs have been the worst team in the league for NBA betting since the middle of January. They went 5-14 (26.3 percent) ATS and are facing an uphill climb without Victor Wembanyama and coach Gregg Popovich available for the remainder of the season. Hot and cold NBA player prop trends The NBA is a player-driven league. Everyone knows that.  While team success is the ultimate goal in sports, it’s the players that make all the difference. There have been several players that have gone above and beyond or just fell flat on their faces lately. Using consensus NBA player prop lines for Friday, the Denver Nuggets' tandem of Michael Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordon are two of the hottest players in the league. Porter Jr. went over his 6.5 rebounds line in eight straight games, while Gordon drilled at least one 3-pointer in eight straight contests. Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes is in the opposite run of form, going under his 34.5 points+rebounds+assists in nine of his last 10 games. But not to be outdone, Oklahoma City Thunder defensive star Lu Dort has come in under 3.5 rebounds in nine straight outings.  With all eyes turned to the City of Angels following the Doncic trade, the Lakers have become the center of NBA betting and the basketball world. Their matchup with the Nuggets on Saturday, Feb. 22 averaged 2.5 million viewers, making it the most-watched NBA game since opening night. The heightened atmosphere has worked well for LeBron James, who has gone over 2.5 3s in seven of 10 games, but not for Doncic, who has come in under his points line in five of six games with his new team. For bettors who don’t mind laying the juice — and we’re talking some fresh-squeezed organic juice here — Anfernee Simons and Jaylen Wells are currently the coldest guys in the league for NBA player props.  The pair went under 0.5 blocks in 10 straight games, although their odds for Friday would pay less than 20 cents per dollar wagered.