The Los Angeles Lakers (9-12) will head into the Quicken Loans Arena to take on the Cleveland Cavaliers (4-17). Although the Lakers offense has made a noticeable progression since coach Mike D'Antoni came on board, those improvements are seemingly coming at the expense of a struggling defense.

Los Angeles is still looking for ways to win basketball games, as they kick off a four-game road trip on Tuesday. The Lakers have lost four out of its last five games, which includes two straight. Since D'Antoni took the reigns for the fired Mike Brown, the team is 4-7.

On a positive note, Los Angeles is now averaging 103.0 points under its new head coach compared to 97.8 with Brown at the helm. The Lakers have even averaged 106.5 points in its last four defeats.

However, the Los Angeles defense has been the team's primary downfall allowing an average of 112.8 points and a 47.2 shooting percentage from its opposition.

D'Antoni spoke to ESPN regarding his club's on the court troubles in the early going of the NBA season.

" I just don't think we've had a gut-check moment yet. At some point we're going to draw a line in the sand and that's it, you have to fight. It seems like things happen on the court that get us down. Are there possessions we just throw away? Yeah. We have too many guys who will take a possession off."

NBA teams have been very successful in taking advantage of the Lakers' inconsistent transition defense. On the fast break, Utah dominated them by a 19-4 and they've been outscored on it76-42 in the last four games.

"Our half-court defense is OK, just giving up too many transition points," Kobe Bryant said.

CLICK HERE to watch the Los Angeles Lakers face off against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Coverage of the game is set to begin at 4 p.m. PST on Tuesday, Dec. 11.

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NBA, Los angeles lakers