Ray Borner

Last updated

Ray Borner
Ballarat Miners
TitleHead coach
League NBL1 South
Personal information
Born (1962-05-27) 27 May 1962 (age 63)
Ballarat, Victoria, Australia
Listed height208 cm (6 ft 10 in)
Listed weight115 kg (254 lb)
Career information
College LSU (1981–1982)
Playing career1980–2003
Position Centre
Coaching career2001–2003; 2026–
Career history
Playing
1980–1985 Coburg Giants
1986–1988 Illawarra Hawks
1989–1992 North Melbourne Giants
1993–1994 Geelong Supercats
1995–2000 Canberra Cannons
2001 Wollongong Hawks
2001–2003 Ballarat Miners
Coaching
2001–2003 Ballarat Miners
2026–presentBallarat Miners
Career highlights

Raymond Helmut Borner OAM (born 27 May 1962) is an Australian former basketball player who played 22 seasons in the National Basketball League (NBL). He was named the NBL Most Valuable Player in 1985 and won an NBL championship in 1989, both as a member of the Coburg / North Melbourne Giants.

Contents

Playing career

NBL

Borner debuted in the NBL in 1980 for the Coburg Giants. In 1985, he was named the NBL Most Valuable Player, becoming the first Australian-born league MVP. [1] After six seasons for Coburg, he joined the Illawarra Hawks in 1986. After three seasons for the Hawks, he joined the North Melbourne Giants in 1989 and won his first and only NBL championship that year. He played four seasons for North Melbourne before joining the Geelong Supercats in 1993. After two seasons for the Supercats, he joined the Canberra Cannons, where he spent six seasons between 1995 and 1999–2000. He had one final stint during the 2000–01 NBL season, playing two games for the Wollongong Hawks in January 2001. [2] He played in the NBL All-Star Game every year between 1991 and 1995. [3]

Borner finished his NBL career with 518 games over 22 seasons. [4] [5] He was inducted into the NBL Hall of Fame in 2006. [6]

The Ray Borner Medal is a medal awarded during the NBL's annual Pre-season Blitz tournament. In 2013, the award was reinstated for the first time since 2004. It had previously been awarded for the best player in the Blitz final, but with its reinstatement in 2013, it became the Blitz tournament MVP award. [1] [7] The award remains active as of 2025. [8]

College

Following the 1981 NBL season, Borner moved to the United States to play a season of college basketball for the LSU Tigers. In 25 games during the 1981–82 season, he made 10 starts and averaged 2.0 points and 1.9 rebounds in 9.6 minutes per game. [9]

National team

Borner competed for the Australian national team in four Summer Olympic Games: 1984 in Los Angeles, 1988 in Seoul, 1992 in Barcelona, and 1996 in Atlanta. He also played for the Boomers at the 1982, [10] 1986, 1990 and 1994 FIBA World Championships. [4] He played 242 international senior games for Australia. [3]

SEABL

Between 2001 and 2003, Borner served as player-coach of the Ballarat Miners in the South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL). [11] [12] He helped the Miners win the SEABL South Conference championship in 2001. [13]

Coaching career

In January 2026, Borner returned to the Ballarat Miners, now in the NBL1 South, to serve as men's head coach for the 2026 NBL1 season. [13] [14]

Personal life

Borner was awarded the Order of Australia medal as part of the 2009 Australia Day Honours. [11]

References

  1. 1 2 Nagy, Boti (21 August 2013). "Multiple Olympian Ray Borner remembered at last by NBL, reinstating his medal for the MVP at the 2013 Pre-season Blitz". adelaidenow.com.au. Archived from the original on 19 January 2026. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  2. ↑ "Ray Borner - Player Statistics NBL 2001". GameDay. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  3. 1 2 "Ray Borner – Player History". NBL.com.au. Archived from the original on 27 June 2001. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  4. 1 2 Howell, Stephen (18 September 2002). "Borner still has that Olympic dream". The Age .
  5. ↑ "Basketball Media Release: Four enter NBL Hall of Fame". sportsaustralia.com. 10 June 2006. Retrieved 4 February 2010.
  6. ↑ "CURRENT BA/NBL HALL OF FAME MEMBERS (MARCH 2010)" (PDF). basketball.net.au. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 December 2010.
  7. ↑ "Born(er) Again!". botinagy.com. 22 August 2013. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  8. ↑ "Brockington stars for unbeaten Breakers at NBL Blitz". ESPN.com. 31 August 2025. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  9. ↑ "Ray Borner College Stats". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  10. ↑ "Squads 1982". linguasport.com. Archived from the original on 13 August 2014.
  11. 1 2 "MEDAL (OAM) OF THE ORDER OF AUSTRALIA IN THE GENERAL DIVISION" (PDF). gg.gov.au. pp. 19 (146). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 February 2014. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  12. ↑ "Ray Borner - Player Statistics SEABL 2003". GameDay. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  13. 1 2 "Ray Borner to Lead Ballarat Miners". NBL1.com.au. 19 January 2026. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  14. ↑ "Borner to be a Miner: Boomers legend back to lead Ballarat | Basketball.com.au". www.basketball.com.au. 19 January 2026. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
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