What's next for Canada at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup: How Canadians can qualify for Paris Olympics

This is where it gets interesting for Canada.

So far, the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup has been smooth sailing for the Canadians. They opened up the tournament with a statement win against France and followed it up with a historic victory over Lebanon. Canada then closed the first round of group play with an impressive performance against Latvia to finish at the top of Group H.

It's been an encouraging start for Canada, but there is still a lot of basketball to be played.

The Sporting News breaks down what's next for Canada and what it still needs to do to qualify for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics.

MORE: Ranking the top players at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup

What's next for Canada at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup

Canada has completed the first round of the Group Phase. Now there's a second round.

Here's how it works: Canada and Latvia, the top two countries in Group H, will form a new group with the top two countries in Group G, which will be Spain and either Brazil or Cote d'Ivoire. (Brazil and Cote d'Ivoire are currently 1-1 and will play each other on Wednesday.) Canada won't play Latvia again in the second round, but it will play the two other countries.

Records carry over from the first round into the second round. That's important because the two teams that finish at the top of the newly formed Group L will then advance to the quarterfinals.

Ahead of the tournament, Spain landed in fourth place in FIBA's Power Rankings. Canada was a spot behind in fifth, followed by Brazil in 11th, Latvia in 14th and Cote d'Ivoire in 32nd.

The goal for Canada is to medal, but it doesn't have to win gold, silver or bronze to qualify for next year's Olympics. All it needs to do is finish ahead of five of the United States, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Mexico and Brazil, which are the countries that make up the FIBA Americas region at the World Cup.

Right now, it's looking like the USA, the Dominican Republic and Brazil are the biggest threats to Canada's Olympic hopes.

For more information on how qualifying works for the Olympics, click here.

Canada's roster for 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup

Here is Canada's roster for the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup:

Canada schedule at 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup

The second round of the Group Phase at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup will run from Aug. 31 to Sept. 3. The Final Phase, or knockout round, will begin on Sept. 5 and conclude on Sept. 10 with the gold medal game.

Here's what we know about Canada's remaining schedule: