The Atlanta Hawks have done an adequate job of staying afloat against teams without their star point guard. They dispatched two terrible teams in the Orlando Magic and the Indiana Pacers, but fell to a Cavaliers team that seems to be in a different tier.

LeBron James didn't join the Los Angeles Lakers for their road trip this week, but he's still getting work against high-level competition.

The Los Angeles Lakers delivered one of their most disappointing performances of the young season Saturday night, falling 121–101 to a severely depleted Atlanta Hawks team. While the Lakers entered the matchup without LeBron James and Austin Reaves, the Hawks were missing an even longer list of key contributors.

With Keegan Murray and Jalen Williams ruled out, and Domantas Sabonis and Lu Dort listed as questionable, there is a chance each team is missing two starters for Friday's matchup. Regardless, all eyes will be on Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, while the Kings lean on Zach LaVine, DeMar DeRozan, and former OKC star Russell Westbrook.