Report: Miami Heat, Rashard Lewis have mutual interest

Free agent forward Rashard Lewis and the Miami Heat appear to have mutual interest, the Sun-Sentinel‘s Ira Winderman reported on Twitter late Monday night.

Agent Tony Dutt confirms to Sun Sentinel Heat interest in Rashard Lewis, says Heat on short list of teams that intrigue free-agent forward.

— Ira Winderman (@IraHeatBeat) July 3, 2012

On Sunday, Yahoo! Sports’ Marc J. Spears reported that Lewis has garnered quite a bit of interest since the Hornets bought out his contract and saved themselves roughly $9 million.

Expect Heat, Celtics, Lakers, Hawks and Knicks to have interest in free agent Rashard Lewis once he clears waivers, source tells Y!

— Marc J. Spears (@SpearsNBAYahoo) July 1, 2012

New Orleans traded for Lewis before the NBA Draft with the expectation of buying out his contract. They dealt Trevor Ariza and Emeka Okafor to the Wizards in exchange.

Since signing a huge six-year, $118 million deal, the 32-year-old Lewis has not produced at a superstar level. His scoring average has declined in each of the past four seasons, to the point where he averaged 7.8 points last season with the Wizards on 38.5 percent shooting from the field.