ROSARIO/SANTA FE (FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018) - Addison Patterson knows Canada have a target on their backs at the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2018. But he welcomes it and at the same time wants to take down the reigning champions United States - just like another Canadian rising superstar did last summer.

RJ Barrett put on a performance for the ages in guiding Canada to the title at the FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2017, including a 38-point, 13-rebound showing in lifting the team past the two-time reigning champs USA in the Semi-Finals.  It was Canada's first-ever men's basketball title and has installed a confidence for future generations, including the one in Argentina.

When asked about the Canada's objective in Rosario and Santa Fe, Patterson said straight-faced: "Beat the USA in the Semi-Finals and win the gold medal for Canada."

That would be just like Barrett and Canada from last year. And the scenario is close to being set up.

"BEAT THE USA IN THE SEMI-FINALS AND WIN THE GOLD MEDAL FOR CANADA."Patterson

Canada have already locked up first place in Group C after beating Montenegro and Egypt in the first two days of action in Rosario. That means the United States would join Canada in their half of the bracket if they beat Serbia on Day 3 and take first place in Group B - making possible a match-up with Canada in the final four.

Patterson, who has been wowing fans in Argentina with his high-flying game, remains grounded though in knowing that a Semi-Final showdown with the four-time reigning champions USA on July 7 is still far off.

"We have to keep getting better every day and focus on us and not worry about anyone else," said Patterson, who is averaging 18.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.0 steals and 1.0 assists in 19 minutes a game. 

"I LOVE (HAVING A TARGET ON HIS BACK). YOU WANT TO BE AT THE TOP AND HAVE PEOPLE AIMING AT YOU. I LOVE PEOPLE COMING FOR ME. I LIKE BEING AT THE TOP."Patterson

Still, the native of Milton in the the Greater Toronto Area knows that Barrett and co. winning the U19 crown last summer in Egypt has turned Canada from the hunter to the hunted.

"We're a country that has a target on our back now," the 6ft 7in (2.01m) wing said.

Patterson though, has no problem with being the hunted.

"I love it," he says with a near smile on his otherwise stoic face. "You want to be at the top and have people aiming at you. I love people coming for me. I like being at the top."

Patterson, who was introduced to the game when he was 4 or 5 years old and was coached by his father until the ninth grade, thrives on the attention.

"If no one is worried about you or talking about you it means that you're not doing that good. I love people talking about me. I love the love and the hate. We welcome it all. We’re just trying to be at the top," said Patterson, who is considered one of the next top talents coming from Canada and the Toronto area.

Patterson experienced being a target first hand earlier this month at the FIBA U18 Americas Championship 2018, where Canada were hosts and faced off against the United States in the Final.

"The US lost to us at the U19 World Cup and they were hungry. We had the target on our back and they came and got us. So now it’s time for us to be the underdogs that we are and come and get them," said Patterson, who turned 17 on June 9.

That tournament in St. Catherines near Toronto was a great learning tool for Patterson, who along with U17 teammate Charles Bediako were the only younger players on the Canadian U18 team. 

"It really developed me as a player and as a person. Playing under Coach Dave Smart was amazing for me. He helped me with a lot of things both on and off the court," said Patterson, who was fourth on the U18 team in scoring with 14.5 points per game while also averaging 5.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 0.8 blocks in his first FIBA competition. "Being around my brothers Andrew (Nembhard), Emanuel Miller, Joel Brown it was a great learning experience."

Patterson's game is already quite far along, thanks also to an ability to play with both hands.

"I would say I am ambidextrous. I shoot right-handed, but I can dribble and finish with my left," said Patterson, who writes with his right hand but bats lefty in baseball and swings a golf club left-handed.

"(WINNING THE U17 WORLD CUP TITLE) WOULD BE AMAZING: IT WOULD BE ONE OF THE BEST EXPERIENCES IN MY LIFE."Patterson

Through two games in Argentina, Patterson has missed all four of his three-pointers, which are the only shots he has taken outside of the paint as he regularly attacks the basket.

Ever confident, Patterson shrugged off any doubt about his outside game, saying: "My outside game is usually pretty good. I shot pretty well at U18 Americas (7-of-18 - 39 percent). It will come, I'm confident."

Perhaps Patterson will start showing off his long-range game against New Zealand to get him ready for the knockout stage where Canada will start in the Round of 16 against the last-placed team from Group D - which will be either hosts Argentina or Philippines. That will be the next step in Patterson’s quest to give Canada their U17 World Cup title - following a second-placed showing in the inaugural edition in 2010.

"It would be amazing. It would be one of the best experiences in my life," Patterson concluded.

The hunt for the target is on.

FIBA