(former hiring manager here) depends on seniority of role and candidate. If you are interviewing for an Eng I or Eng II role (or even more junior, if the company does that) at a large tech company you are likely going to get a 'blind interview' (where its yet to be decided which project you will work on) and then if you are successful, assigned a team based on need within the organization.

It's the reality of how large organizations keep their teams stable with employee turnover and also slightly grow them. Yes, teams will work to fill their roles directly too but often the team will show up for work on a Monday morning to find that they have a new member of their team who they've never met but is an 'extra bonus' or the headcount has been filled anyway.

If you are likely to be interviewing for Eng I/II you should not be surprised if parent's option 1) is the route you are presented with - I think it's wrong to say "you only want to spend time on 2)" as it's unrealistic for early career folks and they risk missing out on exceptional opportunities to get a foot in the door.