Canada's Quarterfinal Matchup Set for Olympic Men's Basketball

Canada is expected to take on France in the quarterfinal of men's basketball at the 2024 Paris Olympics

Aug 2, 2024; Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France; Canada small forward RJ Barrett (9) celebrates after defeating Spain in a men’s group A basketball game during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Stade Pierre-Mauroy. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports / John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Canada's path to a medal won't be easy.

After drawing the toughest group in the opening round of men's basketball at the Paris Olympics, it appears as though Canada will be heading into the toughest matchup of any of the top seeds in quarterfinal play next week. Though it's yet to be made official, Canada will play France in the first round of the playoff with a berth in the semifinal on the line.

Canada finished the group stage 3-0 with a plus-20 point differential, good for the third seed in the playoff behind the top-seeded United States and No. 2 seeded Germany who finished plus-47.

Serbia's victory over South Sudan on Saturday afternoon allowed Serbia to clinch the No. 4 seed in the playoff. France finished the group stage as the No. 5 seed followed by Australia, Brazil, and Greece, respectively.

Traditionally, the top two seeds are randomly drawn to play the bottom two, while the third and fourth seeds are drawn to play the fifth and sixth seeds in the playoff. However, teams in the same opening group are not allowed to play in the opening round of the playoff. Therefore, Canada cannot play the lower-seeded Australian team and will be forced to take on France while the fourth-seeded Serbians face off against the Boomers in the first round.

For the top seeds, Germany cannot play Brazil and will therefore take on Greece in the first round leaving the United States in a matchup against Brazil.

The official bracket will be announced Saturday evening to determine potential semi-final matchups.