The two sides could meet again at the Olympic Games, but while GB are focused squarely on making an impression in London, the Canadians must first negotiate the forthcoming Qualifying Tournament in Turkey in order to book a return trip to the UK next month.
With their final roster already fixed, and preparations well advanced, it means that the visitors will likely be the hardest foes GB have met so far this summer, Stafford claims.
But, she adds, the Standard Life Game On tournament will be an ideal barometer of where the hosts stand: "Canada's a potential Olympic team and they're at the level we'll be facing in London. It's going to be a great match-up for us and a great practice to see where we are and to see if we can beat teams at that level."
Victory in a four-nation tournament in Belgium last weekend has left Tom Maher's side with greater assurances of their own ability, with wins there over Belgium and Ukraine.
"I thought we did a good job defensively, although we fouled a lot during the games," Stafford said.
"We did improve on our aggressiveness, getting steals and lay-ups and improving going forward to this weekend."
Maher will again be without Kim Butler, his most reliable interior presence, who is still nursing an injury.
But the Australian will not accept any excuses. The Canadians, who include five European-based players, are the kind of established power GB must knock off if they are to make an impact at their own Olympics.
"Canada have a very good reputation as a national basketball team," Maher said. "They play very hard-nosed basketball, very team orientated. But we'd like to think we can be up to that level with them.
"They're ranked highly, but we want to see if we can hang with teams of that calibre who are that physical. It's obviously going to be something we'll have to overcome in the future."
The two games - Saturday, tip-off 3pm and Sunday, 1pm - will be accompanied by a four-team Under-14 boys and girls international tournament, featuring Scotland, England, Northern Ireland and Spanish club Girona.
Tickets are available at www.gbbasketball.com/tickets or on the door at Meadowbank.
