Shaquille O'Neal may return to the Miami Heat lineup as early as Sunday, following more than five weeks away because of a badly sprained right ankle.

O'Neal missed his 18th straight game Friday night when the Heat hosted the Denver Nuggets. It's the longest injured stint for the 12-time All-Star since he missed 20 games with an abdominal strain early in the 1997-98 season when he was with the Los Angeles Lakers.

O'Neal returned to practice this week and participated in Miami's shootaround Friday morning. He is scheduled to practice fully on Saturday and then could be in uniform when the Heat host Washington on Sunday.

"We moved pretty good through the walk-through. We went pretty hard," Heat coach Van Gundy said. "And he moved through it pretty well. ... It was encouraging."