USA HC Steve Kerr: 'We Want the No. 1 Seed' in Olympic Basketball Knockout Bracket

The U.S. men's basketball team will be hoping to score as much as possible in Saturday's group stage game against Puerto Rico at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

That's because point differential is a tiebreaker in the group standings, and head coach Steve Kerr says Team USA wants the No. 1 overall seed in the eight-team knockout bracket.

"Yeah, we talked with (the players) about it this morning, showed them the standings, showed them the point differential. We want the No. 1 seed," Kerr said Friday, per The Athletic's Joe Vardon.

Kerr said earning the top seed after the group phase would give Team USA "the best matchup in the quarterfinals."

"So if we drop down to two or three, which I think is unlikely but we've got to take care of our business, we possibly have a much tougher opponent," Kerr said.

Quarterfinal opponents are chosen mostly at random, although the United States will avoid facing any of its group opponents a second time.

Most importantly, the two most highly-ranked teams will enter the knockout round on opposing sides of the bracket. That means the United States could avoid an early matchup with a top competitor by earning a top group stage ranking.

The United States currently holds a tournament-best point differential of plus-43, although Germany sits just 10 points back at plus-33.

Saturday's matchup against Puerto Rico will present the United States with an opportunity to drive up that point differential. Puerto Rico enters the game with a tournament-low point differential of minus-52 and a 0-2 record.

Guard Jrue Holiday is questionable for Saturday's game with an ankle injury, per ESPN's Brian Windhorst. But with stars like Anthony Davis, LeBron James and Steph Curry ready to go and Kevin Durant slotting in as the sixth man, the United States will be heavy favorites in what the team is hoping will be a blowout finale to the group stage.