'Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.'

That's one of many quotes adorning the bulletin board in the Porter Creek Secondary School gymnasium, where the Pan Northern juvenile men's basketball team has been immersed in an intensive five-week training camp since the start of July.

The 'wall of dreams' is a motivational tool employed by head coach Tim Brady, as he and the team prepare for the national championships in Sherbrooke, Que. later this month.

The players, along with Brady himself, have been cutting out inspirational quotes, words or pictures they come across and adding them to the board each day, creating a collage.

Words like dreams, teamwork, underdogs and trust.

'It's a good way for everyone to remember what we're striving for,' said Emmanuel Ramos, who hails from Yellowknife. 'Some of us put in six weeks of our summer to come here and play basketball. It's good to remember what we're doing and why we're doing it.'

It's the second year that the three territories Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut have once again combined their top basketball athletes to form a squad to represent the North at nationals.

This year's team is composed of one player from Nunavut, three from the N.W.T. and eight from the Yukon. Six of them competed at last year's event while six of them will be attending for the first time.

With two 15-year-olds on their roster and four 16-year-olds, the northern crew will be in tough against the larger provinces since it's a U-17 tournament, most of their competitors in Quebec will likely be 17 years old.

'Last year, we had more experience,' agreed Tony Nguyen, a Whitehorse resident returning for his second stint at juvenile nationals. 'We have a young team this year. But we know what to expect.

'The tempo is completely different, with bigger, stronger guys. It's faster.'

While a couple of the team members measure over six feet, this year's team is certainly smaller than in 2006. However, they're confident they have the heart to get past that.

'We're doing our our best to prepare,' said Cambridge Bay, Nunavut's Peter Ohokannoak. 'We may have a smaller team this year, but we make up for it with hustle.'

Ramos said the team won't be as strong on the rebounds as they were last year, when 6'-6' Iqualuit resident Sam Carter led the entire tournament in rebounds (59). Giving other teams a chance at second points could come back to haunt them.

'We're size-challenged,' stated Brady. 'We're going to have to devise some ways to compensate for that, but at this level, it's hard. We're mixing up our defence a bit, doing what we can.'

Brady said with the inexperience of this year's roster, he's had to do a lot more teaching during training camp, but he's been pleased with the effort. They've gotten better as a team, but there's still a long way to go, he said.

'It's been long and hard, but we've been playing tough,' said Nguyen of the camp. 'I'm just really excited to go down there and play.'

For those who are interested in playing college or university basketball once they graduate from high school, a competition of this calibre provides excellent opportunities for networking, and the chance to impress on a large stage.

But no matter who you talk to on the northern roster, they'll all tell you the same thing this team comes first.

'First and foremost, I want to do my best for my team,' stated Ohokannoak. 'That's what's most important.'

It's positive attitudes like that which helped the territories turn heads on the floor last year. They were expected to get blown away when they first arrived in Vancouver, up against players as tall as 6'-11', and with much more game experience. Not only did the territorial squad manage to stay competitive against the bigger provinces, they ended up with a victory, 71-68 over Newfoundland.

Nguyen hopes to find himself back on the winning end at least once this time around. They're in a pool with British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.

'I think we have a chance of beating P.E.I.,' he said.

'P.E.I. is smaller than Newfoundland and we beat them last year, so it's very possible,' added Ohokannoak. 'We just have to communicate.'

'We all believe we can do it,' stated Ramos. 'I don't think any of us are going to give up.'

Outside of a victory, Brady said the team will once again aim to outscore each opponent in at least one quarter. Northern teams have to define success for themselves a lot differently than some of the provinces, he said, because they don't have near the same population to choose from or the same amount of tournament experience.

'It's easy to lose your focus on what you don't have, but we're just grateful for the opportunity of going. And we hope to be able to be competitive.

'Last year, when we beat Newfoundland, that was incredible for us. We'll sure try again.'

The juvenile championships will be held over five days, from Aug. 9 to Aug. 14. With just a few days of training camp remaining, Brady has been tapering the activity back a bit in order to keep the players healthy and well-rested. It's easy to wear out when you're on the court at least 12 hours a week, he said.

Two of the players on the juvenile nationals roster Logan Gray and Will Stevely, both of Whitehorse will also be representing the Yukon on the midget men's team at the Western Canada Summer Games outside of Edmonton starting Friday. They'll fly to Quebec when they're finished there next week.

The Yukon will also be fielding a women's midget team at the Western Canada Summer Games, and a juvenile women's team at their national championships in Vancouver, Aug. 13-17.

It's the first time ever that Basketball Yukon will be sending representative teams in both midget and juvenile age divisions, for men and women, to such high-calibre championship tournaments.

Brady said it's a sign the sport is growing in the territory. At their Summer Hoops Camp in June, about 60 kids signed up, and the annual Steve Nash program for kids ages 5-12 continues to draw interest. Last year, Basketball Yukon also started a regional training program that runs from September to December.

'(Basketball Yukon is) doing more as an organization,' he said. 'If it's a good program, well run and affordable, kids will want to play. Our challenge so far has been to manage it with the resources we have.

'These four teams have provided a great opportunity to develop some other coaches as well.'