The Southeast Division has become synonymous with change over the past few months. The Orlando Magic, Washington Wizards, Miami HEAT and Charlotte Bobcats have all undergone dramatic roster transformations since the end of last season. Yet amongst the whirlwind of changes the Atlanta Hawks still remain essentially the same squad that resurfaced on the national radar during the 2008 campaign.

The Hawks’ front office has taken the stance of remaining slow but steady and is intent on allowing their assembled nucleus to reach their respective ceiling. Even when the organization relieved Mike Woodson as head coach after an embarrassing playoff sweep to the Magic last season, ownership played it safe by hiring his long time assistant Larry Drew to fill the vacancy – a move predicated on not disrupting the chemistry of the unit’s core.

So it comes as no surprise that when something unexpectedly goes against the fabric of consistency in Atlanta, eyebrows will raise and frustrations will surface. It all began when starting lineups were announced before Monday night’s divisional clash with Orlando, when Hawks small forward Marvin Williams’ name was noticeably absent.

Head coach Drew decided to start veteran Jason Collins at center to defend Dwight Howard in the post, while sliding Al Horford who usually starts at center to power forward, which subsequently moved Josh Smith from power forward to small forward and Williams to the bench.

The strategy worked extremely well.

Horford routinely has trouble with the Howard matchup either picking up early fouls or struggling to get into an offensive rhythm. But on Monday night, Horford erupted for 24 points and 11 rebounds and dominated his matchup against the smaller Brandon Bass. 

The Hawks emerged victorious, took a 2-1 regular season series lead over Orlando, who has recently dominated Atlanta, and started to erase some of the bad memories from the 2010 postseason.

Horford, who has told HOOPSWORLD in the past of his desire to log more minutes at the power forward, was comfortable with Drew’s change to the lineup.

"I felt good," said Horford on playing extended minutes at power forward. "I think that anytime we can take advantage of using a big lineup it’s a good thing for our team. We flow just as well."

Hawks All-Star shooting guard Joe Johnson believed the surprise change to the starting lineup gave the team an added edge and was supportive of coach Drew’s decision.

"It was coach’s decision man," said Johnson in reference to Drew’s choice to tweak the starting lineup. "If you look at the matchups, I thought it played in our hands pretty well with big (Jason) Collins guarding Dwight (Howard). But I mean Marvin is a key piece of what we’re trying to do and I’m sure he understood it man with no hard feelings."

Well, not exactly.

When approached about being removed from the starting lineup, a role he’s held since late 2006, Williams didn’t hesitate to voice his displeasure from a competitive standpoint. 

"No. I wasn’t cool with it man," said Williams to HOOPSWORLD about being benched. "It was something different. I’ve been starting here since my second year here, but it was a choice he (Drew) felt like he had to make and I had to live with it. I don’t know if he’ll ever make that change again and I wouldn’t be surprised if he did. But like I said, I’ve been a starter pretty much since I’ve been here but he chose to make that change and I have to live with it."

{AUTHOR_BOX} Guys in the NBA take pride in earning those starting spots so Williams’ frustration shouldn’t cause shockwaves. He handled the one game demotion as a true professional, but there’s a potential dilemma brewing that Drew, a rookie head coach, must handle going forward.

Horford is an undersized center that has blossomed into a bona fide All-Star at the position. However, when given the chance to play his natural position of power forward, there’s no denying that his productivity increases because he’s able to utilize speed and strength advantages.

The Hawks extended Horford to a five-year $60 million deal on November 1 to avoid the risk of the emerging star becoming a restricted free agent next summer. With Horford being extremely vocal of his desire to play more at his natural position over the long term it hasn’t been shocking in the least to see him paired alongside Collins or reserve center Zaza Pachulia on the floor much more frequently this season.

The common misconception of Horford playing extended minutes at power forward has always centered on Smith being dealt in a package to acquire a top 10 center in order to make that a reality.

But the truth of the matter is that the Hawks’ front office believes that Smith is the x-factor of the team’s NBA title ambitions over the long-term. Johnson is a perennial All-Star, Horford appears ready to start his own streak of selections to the midseason classic and the hope is that Smith can continue developing into an All-Star caliber player as well.

Adding to Smith’s value is the fact he has demonstrated the ability to play at a high level while manning the small forward position this season which has been aided by his improved stroke from long distance. Smith is connecting on a career high 42 percent of his attempts from three-point range. 

When reports surfaced in November that the Hawks wouldn’t be able to keep Johnson, Horford, Smith and Williams together past this season for financial reasons it made total sense. After all, the four players will combine to eat up $52 million of Atlanta’s salary cap space in 2012.

What didn’t make sense was the name being reported as the odd man out – Smith.

Let’s be clear, Williams is the Hawks’ first choice to move in a deal if they could find a taker for his salary that yielded some frontcourt talent in return. The team shopped the sixth year forward during the summer but didn’t find the right package they were willing to pull the trigger for. The question is will the team now try to lump Williams and reigning Sixth Man of the Year Jamal Crawford’s expiring deal together to attract more offers at the trade deadline?

In the meantime, Drew will have to continue doing what’s best for the team while messaging egos in the process which will continue to be a tough task because the coach has had a strong hand in developing Williams, Smith, Johnson and Horford since joining the Hawks staff in 2004.

Each of those players has established their reputations around the league under Drew’s watchful eye and criticism through the years. That familiarity while being a blessing to team chemistry can also be a dagger to personal relationships when sudden tweaks are made. Each of these guys feels they have earned their respective spots.

Horford believes that an unselfish mindset will be needed as the squad continues to try and exploit matchups on a game-by-game basis.

"It’s just a different look," continued Horford on the lineup move. "Obviously we know that Marvin is a starter but for some games one of us (in the frontcourt) will have to be able to sacrifice and come off the bench. If my name is called upon and I had to do it (come off the bench) I don’t have a problem with that."

Somehow we seriously doubt that Horford, although willing to help the team in any fashion, will ultimately have to make that sacrifice as long as he’s in Atlanta.