Miami Heat's remaining schedule coming into focus

Miami Heat will reportedly play Bucks, Pacers, Thunder, Suns and Celtics in final eight games

The Miami Heat's schedule for the remainder of the season appears to be finalized.

According to a report by Yahoo! Sports, the Heat will close against the Milwaukee Bucks, Indiana Pacers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Denver Nuggets, Phoenix Suns, Celtics, Pacers and Celtics. All games are expected to be played at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando starting July 31.

The news is likely to become finalized after commissioner Adam Sliver meets with team owners Thursday.

The Heat, who were 41-24 before play was stopped March 11 because of the coronavirus outbreak, are part of a 22-team field that will finish the season. The playoffs begin after the eight games are completed.

The Heat are a combined 6-2 this season against the remaining opponents, with both losses coming to the Celtics. Sixteen of the Heat's 17 players are back in South Florida after guard Jimmy Butler returned this week following a three-month stay at his home in California. Forward Andre Iguodala also spent time in California during the suspended season. Forward Solomon Hill, who lives in Los Angeles, is the only player still away from the team. 

This marks the second time the league could have a shortened season since 2011-12. That year, teams played only 66 games because of a labor stoppage. The Heat, led by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals and captured the second championship in franchise history.

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Shandel Richardson
SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star.  TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com You can subscribe to our YouTube channel here Follow all of our Miami Heat coverage on Facebook here