The Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson reported Saturday that the interest between James Harden and the Miami Heat is mutual. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, Harden had put the Heat on a list of preferred teams for a trade.

Jackson said that “there is no significant internal opposition inside the Heat to pursuing a trade for Harden.” That may come as a surprise to some people who said that Harden would not fit in with “Heat culture.” Others questioned whether Harden’s ball-dominant style of play would mesh well with Miami’s movement-heavy offense from last season.

A deal involving Harden would have to involve Tyler Herro and Duncan Robinson as the main assets going to Houston. Although Bam Adebayo is the Heat’s biggest asset, Miami just signed him to a max extension. He’s not going anywhere. And Jackson reported that Tyler Herro would not be considered off the table in a Harden trade.

I still think the deal that makes the most sense for Harden is one with the Philadelphia 76ers for Ben Simmons. No Rockets fan should be excited about trading away their franchise player — someone who has made First-Team All-NBA six times, including each of the last four seasons — and getting Caris LeVert or Herro and Robinson as the main players in return.