Hawks' Larry Drew says changes might be needed

It's rare that good teams get blown out in their building the way the Hawks have lately.

Actually, it's rare that any NBA team gets handled at home in the manner the Hawks have twice at Philips Arena this season. Their 117-83 loss to the Sixers on Tuesday and their 100-59 defeat to the Hornets on Jan. 21 are the two worst home losses in the NBA this season, entering Wednesday's games.

"I just hope something like that doesn't happen again because it is embarrassing," said Hawks center Al Horford, who missed both games with injuries.

The loss to the Sixers was so listless that Hawks coach Larry Drew said afterward he might change his starting lineup. After sleeping on it, watching the game video and holding a team meeting, Drew said he felt the same way -- and even added that a trade might be the way to improve the Hawks.

"I don’t feel comfortable, totally comfortable with where we are after 52 games," Drew said Wednesday. "We have had some bad losses here at home. That may be a sign [a trade is needed], I don’t know.”

Drew said he hadn't decided if he would change the normal starting lineup of guards Mike Bibby and Joe Johnson, forwards Josh Smith and Marvin Williams and Horford (who missed both the Sixers and Hornets game with injuries). Drew said he might tinker with various alignments in practice as the Hawks prepare to play Charlotte on Saturday at Philips Arena.

Drew has played different lineups this season for strategic purposes, but said a change now may be necessary "to give us a jolt, just to get us out of a comfort zone."

“I am not one to react on emotions, but I have had this feeling for a little while,” Drew said Wednesday. “I have been in situations where it has been like this, where a team has had to do something just to shake the cage a little bit.”

The Hawks had a team meeting Wednesday in which Drew asked each player and coach to give their opinions on the team's struggles at home. Drew said theories varied, but he concluded that the Hawks too often fall into a “comfort zone ... a safe zone” in their arena.

The Hawks are 17-8 at home after finishing 34-7 in 2009-10 and 31-10 in 2008-09. The Hawks have shown improvement on the road, where they are 16-11 this season after posting a 19-22 record in 2009-10.

"The bottom line is we have to just step it up and not worry about who is in the stands [at home], leave the distractions alone on and off the court," Smith said. "We understand on the road the only people we have in that gym is us, and that's who holds it down. We have got to do the same thing at home."

Drew is in his first season as a head coach. He was an assistant to Mike Woodson, who wasn't retained following Orlando's sweep of the Hawks by an NBA-record margin of 101 points in the Eastern Conference semifinals.