Three of Northland's best young basketballers have taken a step closer to their dreams by training with the Breakers Basketball Academy in Auckland.
Jarom Park, Klay Rouse and Brendon Evans are training with the Breakers once a week and will be doubling that commitment in the coming weeks.
Northland Sunsguard Travis McIlroy said one of the main reasons the franchise was set up was to promote the talents of young Northlanders on the national scene and the three youngsters were pioneers in the process.
"These guys are showing the pathway that we have now in the North where you can get noticed at a club level, play for the Suns and hopefully go on to higher honours," he said.
Park has just turned 15 and McIlroy rates the Pahia player a good chance of earning a full-time place at the Breakers Academy next year.
"We've been following his progress at tournaments over the last two years and after the last one we talked to his parents and now he's committed to training with the Breakers and learning from the country's best," he said.
Rouse, a Kamo High School 17-year-old, was outstanding in this year's Whangarei Super-Six competition leading him to be picked up by the Suns for this year's Intercity campaign. He said the Breakers Academy training was something special.
"We're learning heaps every time, it's like a whole different level again - they're ready as soon as we get there and the trainings are just so focused."
McIlroy, who trains with the Breakers after the academy training, said Rouse had what it takes.
"He's got the whole package already - a good demeanour, work ethic and personality - and that will help him to become a professional athlete and the Breakers development coach Judd Flavell - who's a Kamo boys himself - likes the look of him," he said.
Evans is a slightly different case - he is already in his early 20s - but McIlroy rates him as just as promising and said he was likely to be a fantastic shooter if he sticks with the game.
"He's only been playing basketball for 18 months so he's a late starter but since he's been training with the Breakers he's been coming on in leaps and bounds and Judd [Flavell] says he has one of the best shooting mechanics that he's ever seen."
It's a big commitment for McIlroy and the youngsters. They leave Whangarei at 4am to make the 6am start of academy training every Monday.
