Steve Kerr laid down the marker for his United States team ahead of their final group game at the Paris Olympics.
Team USA won their first two Group C encounters, overcoming Serbia and South Sudan.
They face already-eliminated Puerto Rico on Saturday, and though they are assured of progression to the last eight, there is still plenty on the line for the USA.
Kerr's team must win by more than four points to be sure of clinching the top seed for the knockout stage, which would mean they would be drawn against the lowest-ranked team in the quarter-finals.
"We want the No. 1 seed," Kerr said.
"It gives you the best matchup in the quarter-finals. 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."
Points differential is the primary tie-breaker to settle the seeds in the knockout stage. Canada and Germany both stayed perfect through their group campaigns, with the latter occupying the top seed as it stands with a differential of +43.
"The point differential is a big thing, and so even the first two games we were focusing on not taking our foot off like you do in the NBA sometimes," guard Derrick White added.
"So it's a little different than what we're used to, but that's all part of the tournament."
While Jrue Holiday nurses an injury, Anthony Davis is expected to feature for Team USA, while Kevin Durant is embracing his role as a super-sub.
"It's basketball," said veteran Durant.
"It really doesn't matter who starts. It's about really who finished the game, who put their impact on the game while they're in the game.
"So I just try to do my best to impact it any way I can."
Should the USA claim the top seed, they could go up against Giannis Antetokounmpo's Greece, who beat Australia to finish ahead of Spain in Group C.
Greece have to wait on the result of Serbia v South Sudan in order to see if they will qualify.
Caribbean trio improve in men's dinghy; Bermuda’s Penruddocke, Cayman Islands’ Webster slow into stride in women's event
St Lucia’s Luc Chevrier, Aruba’s Just Aanholt, and Thad Lettsome of the British Virgin Islands all redeemed themselves in races three and four of the men's dinghy event at the Marseille Marina – Frioul on Friday.
The standout performance came from Lettsome, who secured an impressive second place in race four. He started strong and led at mark 1, but slipped to third at mark three before inching up to second at mark 4, where he stayed until the end.
Lettsome finished just behind Croatia's Filip Jurisic. Aanholt and Chevrier placed 24th and 25th, respectively.
Race three saw Chevrier deliver the best performance among the trio, as he placed 19th, while Aanholt and Lettsome were 25th and 36th, respectively.
The overall standings reflect improvements for the Caribbean trio, with Chevrier now ranked 31st, Aanholt 33rd, and Lettsome 34th. All three sailors have advanced from their former positions after the first two races, demonstrating their determination and competence.
Bermuda’s Penruddocke, Cayman Islands’ Webster represent the Caribbean in women’s dinghy
Bermuda’s Adriana Penruddocke had a great start in the women’s dinghy event, finishing 14th in race one at the Marseille Marina – Frioul.
Meanwhile, Cayman Islands’ Charlotte Webster finished 41st in the same race.
Both sailors struggled in Race 2, with Penruddocke finishing 35th and Webster 40th. Penruddocke, on the other hand, redeemed herself in race three, finishing 26th, while Webster was 39th.
After three races, Penruddocke is 26th overall with 40 points, and Webster is 41st with 79 points.
Penruddocke, 24, secured her spot in Paris 2024 with a sixth-place result at the 2023 Pan American Games.
Webster, 20, qualified by finishing 12th in the ILCA 6 at the same games, becoming the third woman sailor from Cayman Islands to represent the country at an Olympic Games.
As the competition progresses and the upcoming races begin, the spotlight will be on these Caribbean competitors as they work to improve their place in the sport.
'I have waited almost 20 years' – Djokovic delighted to end long wait for Olympic singles final
Novak Djokovic was relieved to end his Olympic semi-final hoodoo and finally reach the singles final at the Games for the first time.
The 24-time major champion defeated Lorenzo Musetti 6-4 6-2 to ensure he would walk away from Roland-Garros with a medal.
Djokovic will now face number two seed Carlos Alcaraz in a rematch of last month's Wimbledon final.
The 37-year-old was aware of the enormity of the achievement in going one step further, having suffered semi-final losses to Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Alexander Zverev in three previous Olympic semi-finals, though he did claim bronze at the Beijing Games in 2008.
"I have been waiting for this for almost 20 years," Djokovic said in his on-court interview.
"I've played four Olympic Games, this is my fifth and '’ve never passed the semi-finals. I lost three semi-finals in my first four Olympic Games.
"I managed to overcome this big hurdle. I must be honest and say that I was thinking about all the semi-finals that I lost."
The Serbian had to overcome injury concerns after his quarter-final match against Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Djokovic was more encouraged by his mental strength against an opponent that has made great strides on the ATP Tour this season in Musetti.
"I just tried to be in the present moment. I played against a player who is in great form and really came out firing from both ends," Djokovic added.
"I just tried to maintain the focus and do what I have to do."
Sunday's final between Djokovic and Alcaraz will be the seventh meeting between the pair, with the head-to-head currently at three apiece.
Home hero Marchand celebrates 'unbelievable' week after clinching fourth Paris gold
Leon Marchand capped off an "unbelievable" week in the pool as he claimed his fourth gold medal of the Paris Games.
Home hope Marchand has dominated at La Defense Arena, and won the 200-metre medley to complete a remarkable set of golds.
His win on Friday came on the back of success in the 400m medley, 200m butterfly and 200m breaststroke.
The 22-year-old, who was cheered on by French president Emmanuel Macron, told BBC Sport: "It has been unbelievable for me this week.
"I am enjoying every moment of it and this crowd was crazy. I was enjoying everything, it was so cool."
Marchand, who was just 0.06 seconds shy of the world record, finished ahead of Duncan Scott of Great Britain.
"He showed his class there, that is very quick," Scott told BBC Sport.
"What he just went after what has been a busy schedule for the guy – it was special to race him.
"It is a great way to finish it [his individual events] off."
There were two medals for France, with Florent Manaudou clinching bronze.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
