Steve Kerr, Team USA need five-point win to clinch top seed

Steve Kerr told Team USA they needed to beat Puerto Rico by the largest amount possible. But after Germany's 14-point victory over France Friday, they only have to win by five.

Germany moved to 3-0 and took first place in Group B with an 85-71 win over France Friday. The win gave them a point differential of +47 through three games, four better than Team USA's +43 differential after two. That means to get the overall top seed, Team USA will have to beat Puerto Rico by at least five points to lock down the top overall spot.

That matters because the top two teams end up on opposite sides of the bracket in the eight-team knockout round. Germany is the reigning FIBA World Cup champion, having defeated the American team in the semifinals last summer, 113-111. They aren't as star-studded as the U.S. team, but Germany's Franz Wagner and Dennis Schroder combined for 52 points in their blowout of France.

Kerr told his team at practice Friday, "We want the No. 1 seed. It gives you the best matchup in the quarterfinals." With the top seed, Team USA would face either Brazil, who advanced Friday out of Group B along with France and Germany, or Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Greek team.

Greece finished one point behind Brazil with a differential of -8, which means they'll have to sweat out Saturday's game between Serbia (+15) and South Sudan (-6). The winner of that game finishes second in Group C, while the other has to beat Greece's differential to move on. That means Serbia needs to win, or lose by 22 points or fewer, and South Sudan needs to win or lose by one or fewer.

Team USA can't play Serbia or South Sudan in the quarters because they're from the same group. By finishing first, they'd also stay on the opposite side of the draw from No. 3 seed Canada, winners of all three of their games in Group A. Serbia and Nikola Jokic can get the No. 4 seed with a win, while France will end up no worse than fifth.

That means the United States is likely to face star big men should it advance to the semifinals, either Serbia's Nikola Jokic or France's Victor Wembanyama and Rudy Gobert. There's also an excellent chance they'll end up facing two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo in the quarters, one of the few men with a claim to be the best basketball player in the world.

But against Puerto Rico, who have lost their first two games by a combined 52 points, Team USA should cruise to the top seed. But once the knockout round begins, that's when the cruising ends.