The Buyout Crew Update:  A number of players have hit the market by way of contract buyout, and there are a couple of more that could be bought out today and remain eligible for the playoffs.

Here is the latest on the names to know:

Troy Murphy:  Troy Murphy seems to have narrowed his choices to two NBA teams, the Boston Celtics and the Miami HEAT. Both clubs were believed to have made their pitch to the 6’10 forward yesterday and he is expected to reach a decision fairly quickly.

Murphy is the gem of the Buyout Crew, and has heard from half of the playoff-bound teams in the league according to sources. However, the agreement that got Murphy his release from the Warrior prohibits him from signing with a Western Conference team, leaving him to choose between the first place Celtics and the second place HEAT.

Both teams are only offering a pro-rated veteran minimum contract, worth roughly $320,000 for the balance of the season. Both teams are all but guaranteeing playing time, something that is incredibly important to Murphy who has played very little this season.

UPDATE: Troy Murphy has opted to sign with the Boston Celtics, agreeing to a deal built around the pro-rated NBA veterans’ minimum salary. Murphy is expected to clear waivers today and join the Celtics almost immediately.

Mike Bibby:  Veteran point guard Mike Bibby surrendered some $6.2 million in salary to gain his release from the Washington Wizards and is expected to join the Miami HEAT in the coming days.

The HEAT were active around the trade deadline looking for a veteran point guard and word is that once Bibby opened talks on a buyout the HEAT indicated a strong interest with suggestions that he might get the starters job when he arrives in Miami.

The HEAT have no open roster spots, so its believed the HEAT will waive both Carlos Arroyo and Jamaal Magloire to make room for Bibby and possibly Troy Murphy.

Assuming the HEAT make those transactions today, both Arroyo and Magloire would be playoff-eligible if they were to sign elsewhere.

The Orlando Magic have made several passes at Magloire throughout the season and may be able to land him for almost nothing by weeks end.

Corey Brewer:  The New York Knicks have reached a buyout agreement with swingman Corey Brewer. The Knicks acquired Brewer as part of the Carmelo Anthony deal and as much as New York liked Brewer as a player there are no minutes for Brewer who is in a contract year.

Brewer’s camp says he has heard from Boston, Chicago, San Antonio, Dallas and Oklahoma City as possible free agent destinations. The Mavericks have expressed interest in Brewer but word this morning is the team is leaning towards signing Sasha Pavlovic for the balance of the season instead.

Dan Gadzuric:  The Nets will play two regular season games in London versus the Toronto Raptors this week and recently acquired Dan Gadzuric was not on the team flight to London.

Gadzuric was part of the trade that sent Troy Murphy to the Golden State Warriors and returned Brandan Wright and Gadzuric to the Nets. Gadzuric was a salary throw-in to make the math work under the cap.

Gadzuric’s camp is working on a buyout agreement with the Nets and he is expected to be waived by the team sometime today.

Gadzuric is a legit 7-foot center, and while not high on anyone’s radar, he is believed to be a player of interest to the Orlando Magic who tried to swap guard Chris Duhon to the Golden State Warriors as part of a package to acquire the seven-footer in January. Those talks went nowhere as the Warriors had little interest in Duhon, but with Gadzuric hitting the open market and being inexpensive to obtain, don’t rule him out of the Magic’s open roster spot, if he gets his release today.

Rasual Butler: Butler got his release from the L.A. Clippers over the weekend and is believed to be headed to Chicago.

The Bulls have several open roster spots as they are carrying just 12 players, so they have three open roster spots.

Butler has also been linked to the Knicks, mainly because of his relationship with newly acquire Knick Carmelo Anthony, but sources close to the situation said it was far more likely that "Bop" lands in Chicago than anywhere else.

Jared Jeffries:  The Houston Rockets granted Jared Jeffries his release this weekend and he has already made arrangement for an apartment in New York. The Knicks recently waived Kelenna Azubuike whose roster spot is expected to go to Jeffries.

Jeffries has his best season in recent years under Mike D’Antoni and was eager to return to a system where he not only flourished, but got a chance to play.

The Knicks also reached a buyout agreement with Corey Brewer, as covered above, and that roster spot may go to Indiana guard T.J. Ford if he takes a buyout from the Pacers.

Eddy Curry:  The Minnesota Timberwolves granted center Eddy Curry his release and he went immediately to long-time trainer Tim Grover in Chicago to get himself into "playing shape."

Curry told people close to him that he’d be joining the Miami HEAT in the coming week.

There is no doubting Curry’s issues… he has been injury plagued and massively overweight and out of shape for the last two seasons. However you can’t ignore that in 2007-2008 he averaged 13.2 points and 4.7 rebounds per games on 25.9 minutes of playing time, his last meaningful minutes in three years.

Curry has never been a favorite of Knicks’ coach Mike D’Antoni, so how much does Curry have left in the tank if given a fresh start and an opportunity to play?

Curry is a nine-year NBA veteran and would be eligible to sign a pro-rated NBA minimum contract worth roughly $325,000.

It’s hard to see how a championship contender like Miami would risk bringing a bad influence into their locker room, but with Curry’s size and his long lost ability in the paint, something the HEAT have none of, could he be the right gamble? He’s telling people in Chicago he is.

There are a few other released players that could land on veteran teams such as Morris Peterson, who was waived by the Charlotte Bobcats.

The Knicks released Kelenna Azubuike, but he is still recovering from a knee injury and may need more time, although his camp said he was really close to a return and the release was a surprise.

76ers forward Jason Kapono has a buyout offer on the table, but wants to understand where he’d land before accepting it, so he could be an 11th hour decision.

Players must be waived by March 1st in order to be eligible to compete in the playoffs, so buyout decisions have to be made today.

If a player is waived today, that player can sign at any time before the end of the season and be eligible for the playoffs, as eligibility is tied to when a player is released, not when that player signs.

The Salary Myth:  A lot was made of Mike Bibby’s decision to forgo all of his $6.2 million salary for next season to gain his release from the Washington Wizards.

Now leaving any money on the table in the wake of a potential lockout in the NBA seems foolish, but labor issues aside there is another thing to consider and this falls into the myth of the NBA salaries.

Mike Bibby wouldn’t make $6.2 million next year. Mike is going to lose 10% of that money to the NBA’s escrow system, which insures owners do not pay more than 57% of revenue to players. Players have not seen a return on that money for several years, so lop 10% off the top of that number.

Bibby will then lose roughly 46% to income taxes and professional fees.

When it’s said and done, Bibby may clear $3.02 million next season, assuming there is no work stoppage. If the NBA misses games, that salary number decreases at the rate of $17,500 per day missed to a lockout.

Does Bibby have a year of his career to waste? Or is it smarter to take the hit, join a contender and maybe get a championship ring before its said and done?

Bibby with a championship ring might play for two more years and make up that lost money. Bibby on the Washington Wizards is a minimum contract player if he’s in the league at all after next year.

Mike Bibby did leave a lot of money on the table to gain his freedom, but when you consider over the course of Mike Bibby’s career he has earned more than $100 million in gross dollars, and likely netted close to $54 million, this move was about going out a winner not about money.

Why They Traded A 1st Rounder:  You generally don’t see teams sitting 29 games out of first place in the conference willing to trade first round draft picks. Especially not draft picks that are projected to fall in the 7 to 10 range, but that’s exactly what the L.A. Clippers did in triggering their Baron Davis for Mo Williams/Jamario Moon trade last Thursday.

{AUTHOR_BOX}Clippers’ Vice President of Basketball Operations Neil Olshey admits it wasn’t easy to convince Clips owner Donald Sterling to part with an unprotected draft pick to make the deal happen, but he ultimately got the owners’ buy in.

"A third of our roster is 22 years old and under," Olshey said Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. "That’s enough.

"I think we’re plenty young enough," he said.

"We can keep drafting every year, but after a while you can only have a certain amount of 22-year-olds. I think that might be the direction we’re trying to go."

"Now we need some guys that have been to the playoffs, that know how to win, that are veterans. So a guy like Mo Williams, who’s been to the playoffs everywhere he’s played, is a guy that can give directions to our younger guys.

Olshey said that because so many of the Clippers recent draft picks have worked out, that there was a bigger comfort zone in sitting out what many pundits are calling a soft 2011 Draft.

"Had we not drafted well, you’re reluctant [to trade a lottery pick] because you’re hoping the next draft is where we’ll get the guy. But we’ve hit home runs four years in a row, so now it’s time to add a veteran piece to this group."

Olshey and the Clippers tried last summer to convince LeBron James to join the Clippers as a free agent. Olshey said that almost everything they promised LeBron would occur this year has happened.

"Everything that I said in that meeting with LeBron was true, but I had no empirical evidence to prove it," Olshey said. "We said Eric Gordon was on the verge of being a star; he is. We said DeAndre Jordan was on the verge of a breakout year, and he has. We said Blake Griffin was a superstar. We were right."

Olshey believes the success his team has had in finding and developing talent will make it easier this offseason when he goes after veteran players, mainly because they don’t need to take a leap of faith.

"There’s a lot less risk in the room when you’re talking to somebody. I don’t have to say ‘trust me’ anymore," said Olshey. "I can say, ‘Look.’"

The Clippers have $52.5 million in salary commitments this season, putting them under the current $58.04 million salary cap, and have $44.9 million in salary commitments next season.

Depending on where the salary cap gets set in the next labor agreement Olshey could have a more proven product to sell free agents and a lot of cash to back it up.

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NBA Chats: There will be three NBA Chats today starting with Luke Byrnes who will host his weekly Hoops Chat at 1pm EST. Luke covers the Western Conference and College Basketball for HOOPSWORLD, so get your questions in early. Senior NBA Writer Eric Pincus will hold his weekly NBA chat today at 4pm. Eric covers the NBA as a whole, but is based in LA with the Lakers and Clippers. Stephen Litel will dig out from the snow in Minnesota to hold his weekly NBA Chat at 8pm EST. You can always find the next chat here: Upcoming NBA Chats.