How far can Canada go at the Basketball World Cup?

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Canada arrived at the men's Basketball World Cup with a clear mission: qualify for next year's Olympics in Paris. Heading into the second round, it's fair to wonder whether the team should set its sights even higher.

Led by the marvelous Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and new coach Jordi Fernandez, Canada rolled through its first-round group in Jakarta, Indonesia with three blowout wins. A stunning 95-65 rout of 2021 Olympic silver medallist France led to a 128-72 laugher against Lebanon before the Canadians overcame a slow start to surge past Latvia 101-75 to claim first place in Group H.

For the 16-team second round, tipping off Friday, Canada joins a new group with Spain (3-0), Brazil (2-1) and Latvia (2-1). Those records carry over, and each team plays the two group members that it didn't face in the opening round. Canada will meet Brazil on Friday at 9:30 a.m. ET and Spain on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. ET. The top two teams in each group advance to the quarterfinals in the Philippines.

The competition will get tougher now that the field has been cut in half. But the Canadians appear equipped to meet the moment. Their point differential of plus-111 topped all 32 teams in the opening round, including the tournament-favourite United States (plus-103).

Canada's NBA-seasoned roster features a truly elite player in Gilgeous-Alexander, the 25-year-old guard for the Oklahoma City Thunder who placed fifth in NBA MVP voting last season. SGA scored 27 points and dished out six assists against both France and Latvia while averaging 9.5 rebounds in those games. He's the second-leading scorer