Updated

LeBron James will not play in Miami's final road game — against the Cavaliers — as the Heat get ready for the NBA playoffs.

James is sitting out another homecoming in Cleveland as Heat coach Erik Spoelstra has decided to rest the superstar along with Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade, Mario Chalmers and other top players.

Wade, Udonis Haslem and Shane Battier didn't even make the trip to Cleveland.

Spoelstra said James, who has been slowed by tightness in his hamstrings, understands the decision to have him sit out his sixth game in Quicken Loans Arena against the Cavaliers, his team for seven seasons before he left in 2010 as a free agent.

Spoelstra will only have nine players in uniform and he will start 40-year-old Juwan Howard.

On Miami's previous visit, the Heat overcame a 27-point deficit to win.