NBA Rumor: Mike Bibby To Miami, Boston, Portland Or Denver

UPDATE: According to Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports, Bibby agreed to give up his entire $6.2 million salary for next season.

After being traded to the Washington Wizards last week, it appears Mike Bibby won’t be staying long. According to Michael Lee of The Washington Post, Bibby’s agent, David Falk, is currently speaking with Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld to finalize a buyout. What does this mean? As early as this week, you could see the former No. 2 overall pick in a Heat, Celtics, Blazers or Nuggets jersey.

While there’s no word yet as to how much of a pay cut Bibby will be taking, he’s clearly put a personal premium on returning to a winning team. Right now, Bibby is set to make the remainder of his $5.7 million contract this year, as well as $6.4 million next season. At 32 years old and declining productivity, there’s no way he’ll get that type of money on the open market this summer – that is, assuming he signs a deal with a contender just for the rest of the season.

Of the four teams interested in him, Miami and Boston offer the greatest shot at a trip to the NBA Finals, but not necessarily at playing time. With Portland and Denver, he’d have a greater chance to play, return to the West Coast and hopefully make the difference as both squads hope to climb the Western Conference standings before the playoffs.

Note: March 1 is the deadline for players to be released from their contracts and allowed to appear in the playoffs for another team.

Where do you think he’ll sign?

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