The Miami Heat were very interested in acquiring Evan Turner before the trade deadline, and they were reportedly on the verge of trading for the Philadelphia 76ers forward before the defending champions made a sudden U-turn.

The Miami Herald reports that the Heat and 76ers were in deep talks about a trade that would send Turner to Miami, but the Heat backed out of negotiations when Philadelphia asked for Udonis Haslem.

When the Heat backed out of the deal, the 76ers struck a trade deadline deal that sent the former second-overall pick to Miami's Eastern Conference rivals the Indiana Pacers for Danny Granger.

Acquiring Turner, who was reportedly one of the Heat's primary targets heading into the deadline, would have given the Heat a young asset who could immediately make an impact this season.

However, the Heat were not willing to give up Haslem because of the 33-year-old forward's loyalty with the team.

Haslem has spent his entire 11-year NBA career in Miami. The former Florida standout was almost left out when the Heat acquired LeBron James and Chris Bosh in 2010, but Haslem made a sacrifice just to stay with the team.

"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 reported.

Turner, who is averaging 17.1 points to go along with 6.0 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game this season, could have been another scoring threat for the Heat this season, especially in the playoffs.

Haslem, on the other hand, has not been a major factor for the Heat this season, averaging just 2.7 points and 2.8 rebounds in 12.5 minutes per game.

Turner looked like a perfect fit for the Heat, considering Dwyane Wade's health status this season. Wade has been in and out of the Heat's roster due to an ailing knee, and Turner could have been a good backup to the All-Star guard.

"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.