NBA Scout Mike Born

The lessons and the friendships and all those things that sports provide has been really fulfilling

There are three kinds of guys hooping at old man pick-up games over a lunch hour. First, you have the young bucks who still have gas in the tank from their high school and college days. The other obvious group are the old dogs. The ones with the knee braces, ankle braces, maybe even a back brace here and there. Throw in a pair of rec specs and you’ve got a guy who is deadly from within ten feet but isn’t interested in running the court. Then you have the guys that are tough to figure out. They may look a little older but they still move pretty well. They know how to stay one step ahead without being quicker and seem to be in the right place at the right time. They’ve got a smooth shot and dish a few well timed passes. An hour later and they have guys 15-20 years younger totally frustrated. Tim ran into one of these guys a few years ago and came to find out that he was a former Cyclone who was now an NBA scout. It wasn’t just some insurance salesman, but a guy who had been around the game, and some of the best in the world, his whole life; Mike Born. 

Basketball... it's something that I have loved my entire life

Mike Born grew up in West Des Moines before accepting a scholarship to play for the University of Nebraska-Omaha. Born spent two years in Omaha before deciding to transfer as a walk-on to play for Johnny Orr and the Cyclones. After sitting out his transfer year, Born and the Cyclones went to two straight NCAA tournaments. Born spent one year playing professionally in Paris before coming back home. Born’s playing days weren’t totally over as he played for Marathon Oil and then helped start the Pella Windows amatuer team. He served as the GM, coach, driver, laundry man and whatever else it took to keep playing ball. They would play 15 exhibition games against colleges across the midwest each November and even went on to win 2 AAU national titles.

We actually had two players that were older than we were

Even when his competitive playing days were done, Born stayed on the court as a coach and worked the sidelines with future NBA champion Nick Nurse. Coaching in the amatuer/AAU, college and NBA D-League ranks was only his second act for Born. After spending so much of his life as a player and coach, Born had made connections around the basketball world. One high point of his career was working at Michael Jordan’s camp, which included playing on Jordan’s team in camp pickup games. Born experienced MJ’s competitive fire first hand and has some awesome stories about the greatest of all time.

My eyes are the camera

Born’s third act is perhaps his most prominent basketball role; now serving as an NBA scout. Over the last 15 years, Born has taken everything he has learned about the game as a player and coach into his position as a scout for the Portland Trailblazers, Charlotte Hornets, and now the Indiana Pacers. His current work has him travelling and evaluating talent at the highest levels. All of those experiences are also coming together in his most important role, dad. Mike Born’s oldest son is the current Iowa Mr. Basketball, Bowen. Bowen Born is a UNI recruit who just completed a stellar senior season at Norwalk High School.