Los Angeles @ Atlanta preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 7, 2018 ) Atlanta 113, L.A. Lakers 132

The Los Angeles Lakers are undefeated in two games since the All-Star break with Julius Randle and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope stepping up to lead the way. The Lakers will try to stay hot when the four-game road trip shifts to the east coast in a visit to the Atlanta Hawks on Monday.

Los Angeles is bringing rookie point guard Lonzo Ball back slowly from a knee injury and continues to bring Isaiah Thomas off the bench, leaving Randle and fellow forward Brandon Ingram to handle the playmaking responsibilities with the first unit. Randle, a power forward, ripped off a triple-double in a 124-102 win over Dallas on Friday while Ingram paced the team with eight assists in a triumph at Sacramento on Saturday. The Hawks' offense is not operating quite as efficiently of late and bridged the All-Star break with a three-game losing streak during which the team failed to reach 100 points. Atlanta's first game out of the break came Friday at Indiana, when it was crushed 116-93 while committing 22 turnovers.

TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles), FS Southeast (Atlanta)

ABOUT THE LAKERS (25-34): Caldwell-Pope was the beneficiary of some of that offensive efficiency on Saturday and scored a season-high 34 points to go with seven rebounds. The 25-year-old went 8-of-14 from 3-point range in the performance -- tying a career high for made 3-pointers -- and is 20-of-37 from beyond the arc in his last six contests. "I built my career in the league playing defense and making shots, and also making plays when I needed to," Caldwell-Pope told reporters. "That's kind of my game and how I built my career."

ABOUT THE HAWKS (18-42): Atlanta is in last place in the East but is a respectable 13-17 at home, where it will play its next four games and seven of the next nine. Point guard Dennis Schroder was on a roll before the break and averaged 22 points on 53.2 percent shooting in his last three games but looked rusty on Friday, when he was held to nine points on 3-of-12 from the field. Second-year point guard Isaiah Taylor came off the bench and picked up some of the slack while scoring a career-high 17 points in 23 minutes against the Pacers.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. The Hawks are reportedly negotiating a buyout with PF Ersan Ilyasova.

2. Lakers PF Channing Frye (appendectomy) will miss his fourth straight game.

3. Los Angeles took the last three in the series, including a 132-113 home win on Jan. 7.

PREDICTION: Lakers 120, Hawks 103