A radio network operates by: converting, in accordance with a communication standard, received fronthaul communications from a plurality of radio units (RUs) into backhaul communications transmitted to a communications network, wherein the plurality of radio units are configured to engage in wireless communications with a plurality of user equipment (UEs) via a radio channel of a radio network; converting, in accordance with the communication standard, received backhaul communications from the communications network into fronthaul communications transmitted to the plurality of RUs; providing a shared scheduler associated with a radio channel that is partitioned into a plurality of physical radio blocks (PRBs), wherein the plurality of PRBs are accessible by the plurality of UEs via the RUs; and generating, via the shared scheduler, an UE to PRB to RU allocation that associates ones of the plurality of PRBs to selected ones of the plurality of UEs and selected ones of the plurality of RUs, without a UE to RU pre-allocation, wherein the fronthaul communications control wireless communications between the plurality of UEs and the plurality of RUs, via the UE to PRB to RU allocation.