The Philadelphia 76ers struck a last-minute deal with the Indiana Pacers before the trade deadline, sending Evan Turner to Indianapolis for former All-Star forward Danny Granger.
But before the 76ers moved Turner to Indiana, the former second-overall pick was almost traded to the Miami Heat before the defending champions backed out of the soon-to-be-completed trade-deadline deal.
According to the Miami Herald, the Heat, who were very aggressive in their pursuit of Turner, turned down a proposed trade for the 25-year-old forward when the 76ers asked for Udonis Haslem.
Sources said that the Heat were unwilling to include Haslem in any deal for Turner because Miami wanted to keep the veteran power forward - not for basketball reasons, but as a sign of respect to Haslem.
The 33-year-old forward has been with the Heat since his first season in the league. His Heat tenure almost ended when the Heat signed LeBron James and Chris Bosh in 2010, but Haslem sacrificed several millions in salary just to stay in Miami, and help the team capture another title.
"The Heat last week rejected Philadelphia's trade offer of Evan Turner for Udonis Haslem because trading Haslem, who sacrificed more than $10 million to sign here, would not be sending the right message," the Miami Herald noted.
Turner, who has been on Philadelphia's trading block for the past several weeks, is averaging 17.1 points to go along with 5.9 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game this season.
The former Ohio State standout's scoring ability would have given the Heat an additional threat, who could play a big role in their chase for their third-straight title this season.
The fourth-year forward also looked like a perfect fit to the Heat this season compared to Haslem, who is just averaging 2.6 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.
Turner could have given the Heat a perfect backup to Dwyane Wade or possibly a starter in case Wade gets sidelined again by his ailing knee, but the defending champions opted to honor Haslem's loyalty with the team.
"Turner would have potentially helped more than Haslem, and even more so, because dumping Haslem's $4.62 million salary next season would have greatly eased Miami's luxury tax burden and thus made it easier to add or keep supporting players such as re-signing Mario Chalmers," the Miami Herald added.
