Getty Tyler Herro #14 and Jimmy Butler #22 of the Miami Heat talk against the New York Knicks during the fourth quarter at American Airlines Arena on February 09, 2021 in Miami, Florida.
The NBA released the schedule for the second half of the season and the Miami Heat have quite the journey ahead. After what’s already been a grueling first half, the Heat will finish off the regular with an insanely difficult schedule.
After the All-Star break, which will serve as a full rest period since not one Heat player was picked for the roster — Miami will have a total of 36 games to turn their season around. However, it will be significantly more difficult for Miami to pull themselves out of the bottom of the Eastern Conference when facing nine sets of back-to-back games.
This shortened 2020-2021 NBA season has been particularly tough on the Heat. After coming within two games of winning the NBA Championship against the Los Angeles Lakers in October, they had the shortest off-season in league history. A few games after this season started, they found themselves riddled with injuries and ravaged by COVID-19.
Heat to unveil yet another uniform design for this season, during second half of season, as team’s official schedule shows, the option earned by making last season’s playoffs. Looks like gold will be a thing. No further details from the team at the moment.
Instead of playing a normal 82-game season that starts in October, this NBA season kicked off in December and includes only 72 regular-season games. The second half of the season for the Heat kicks off on March 11 with a home game against the Orlando Magic at the AmericanAirlines Arena.
Getty(L-R) Goran Dragic #7, Duncan Robinson #55, Jimmy Butler #22, Andre Iguodala #28 and Kelly Olynyk #9 of the Miami Heat look on from the bench during the fourth quarter of a preseason game against the New Orleans Pelicans at American Airlines Arena on December 14, 2020.
The Heat only played four sets of back-to-back games during the first half of this season. The uptick in back-to-backs games during the second half stems from the need to make up for the games postponed due to COVID-19 health and safety protocols in the first half.
As for breaks, the Heat will only have five rest periods during the second half that are more than 24 hours. If the Heat aren’t able to punch themselves a ticket to the post-season, their final game will take place against the Pistons on May 16 in Detriot.
The Heat Will Have a Limited Number of Primetime TV Games
Similar to the first half of the season, the Heat will only be featured in a limited number of national spotlight games. A few of the standout games scheduled for primetime include the following: Portland Trail Blazers on March 25 (TNT), the Lakers on April 8 (TNT), the Brooklyn Nets on April 18 (ESPN), and Boston Celtics on May 9 (ESPN).
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The Full List of Games for the Second Half of the Heat’s 2020-2021 NBA Season
March 11 vs. ORLANDO, 8 p.m. ET
March 12 at Chicago, 9 p.m. ET
March 14 at Orlando, 7 p.m. ET
March 16 vs. CLEVELAND, 8 p.m. ET
March 17 at Memphis, 9 p.m. ET
March 19 vs. INDIANA, 8 p.m. ET
March 21 vs. INDIANA, 1 p.m. ET
March 23 vs. PHOENIX, 8 p.m. ET
March 25 vs. PORTLAND, 8 p.m. ET
March 26 at Charlotte, 8 p.m. ET
March 29 at New York, 7:30 p.m. ET
March 31 at Indiana, 7 p.m. ET
April 1, vs. GOLDEN STATE, 8 p.m. ET
April 3, vs. CLEVELAND, 8 p.m. ET
April 6 vs. MEMPHIS, 8 p.m. ET
April 8 vs. LAKERS, 8 p.m. ET
April 11 at Portland, 10 p.m. ET
April 13 at Phoenix, 10 p.m. ET
April 14 at Denver, 10 p.m. ET
April 16 at Minnesota, 8 p.m. ET
April 18 vs. BROOKLYN, 3:30 p.m. ET
April 19 vs. HOUSTON, 8 p.m. ET
April 21 at San Antonio, 8:30 p.m. ET
April 23 at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m. ET
April 24 vs. CHICAGO, 8 p.m. ET
April 26 vs. CHICAGO, 8 p.m. ET
April 28 vs. SAN ANTONIO, 8 p.m. ET
May 1 at Cleveland, 8 p.m. ET
May 2 at Charlotte, 8 p.m. ET
May 4 vs. DALLAS, 8 p.m. ET
May 7 vs. MINNESOTA, 8 p.m. ET
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Miami Heat’s Second Half Schedule Is Insane: Full List of Games