'Go Find Something You Love—And Get Paid for It'

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For over three decades, Coach Jan Azar has built more than winning teams—she’s built a culture of excellence that extends far beyond the basketball court.

Her resume speaks for itself: over 720 career wins, 16 state championships, and the distinction of being the winningest coach in Georgia High School Association history. At Wesleyan School, where she spent 21 seasons, Azar turned the girls’ basketball program into a dynasty, leading the team to an astonishing 571-133 record and cementing a legacy of sustained dominance.

But if you ask her, the wins and banners are only part of the story. Now in her fifth year at Hebron Christian Academy, where she serves as Head Varsity Girls Basketball Coach and Director of Youth Lions programs, Coach Azar remains focused on something far greater than the scoreboard: developing young athletes into strong and confident leaders who carry the lessons of the game into every aspect of their lives.

The Daily Coach spoke with Coach Azar about the pivotal career moment that led her into coaching, the foundation of her championship culture, and the mindset required to win—not just in basketball, but in life.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

…

Coach, we're grateful for you doing this. Tell us about your childhood and some key lessons from it.

I have two brothers—one’s an athletic director and coached football, and the other’s a baseball guy. So we grew up in different sports seasons, always playing something. We were never just locked into one thing. My mom was a school teacher for 30 years, and my dad coached us some growing up. I have aunts and uncles all throughout the coaching world, and my grandmother was big in athletics in Macon, Georgia.

I’ve even coached alongside my aunt, and my cousin is the head football coach at Samford University. So we’re just a huge sports family. And the biggest thing I’ve taken from that—especially from team sports—is learning how to work with different types of people. My husband was a tennis player, which is more of an individual sport, but he played other sports growing up too.

What I really appreciate about team sports is how they teach you to see what everyone brings to the group—whether it’s a big role or a small one—and make that valuable. That’s something that sticks with you way beyond sports. No matter what job you have, you’re always going to have to work with different people and different personalities. And that’s one of the biggest lessons young athletes take with them as they move through high school, college, and eventually into the workplace. You’ve got to be able to work with others.

Your career started on the accounting route before you transitioned into teaching and coaching. What led you to make that change, and how did you discover your love for coaching?

I started on the accounting route because I was really good at math. But something just felt like it was missing. So I started thinking about what I enjoyed most growing up. My mom was a teacher—she was really good at it, and she loved her job. She woke up every day excited to go to work, and she always told us, Find something you enjoy and can get paid for.

At first, I thought accounting would be that for me. I figured I could make some money, become a CPA. But once I got into it, I realized it just wasn’t what I wanted to do. I enjoyed school—I liked being around people, I had great teachers at St. Pius in Atlanta—so I decided to major in math and become a teacher.

That’s when I discovered coaching. My first job was at Druid Hills High School as a math teacher, and I was the swim coach for a little while. Then one day, someone asked me, Do you want to be our ninth-grade girls' basketball coach? And I said, Well, yeah, I love basketball. So that’s where it started. The first time I stepped on the court to coach, that was it—I was hooked. It was ninth-grade basketball, and we had to practice up on the stage, but I didn’t care. It was just so much fun.

I grew up playing softball and basketball, and over the years, I’ve coached both. But basketball was where my passion was. I love the speed of the game, the quick thinking it requires—I’m a fast thinker, so it just fit. I spent over 30 years teaching math, got my master’s in it, and coached all along the way. Now, I also work in youth sports at Hebron. I don’t teach anymore, but I still carry what my mom always said: Go find something you love and get paid for it.

You’ve led teams to sustained success throughout your career. What are the most valuable lessons you’ve learned about sustaining excellence and high performance?

I did some losing before I did some winning, and I’ve learned a lot along the way. One of the keys to excellence is never thinking you know everything. I’m always watching others—learning from younger coaches, older coaches, and anyone who does things in a way that makes me reflect and grow. While I can be stubborn in my ways, I’ve never been unwilling to adapt if I see something worth incorporating.

Sustaining excellence comes from continuous learning, but also from deciding early on who you want to be and what’s important to you. For me, that’s always been about player development. I’ve coached at a K-12 school throughout my career, and watching young athletes grow into who they are—both on and off the court—has always been a priority.

Another lesson I learned early is the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people. Knowing basketball or being a great player matters less than building a culture with high-character individuals. Players treat each other well on the court when they have strong relationships off the court. Culture is built beyond the game, and when you get that right, success follows.

I was fortunate to coach under my aunt for a while, and she embodied this philosophy. She was a great coach, but an even better person. Watching how she interacted with her players, and how much she valued their character beyond the game, showed me that the right culture off the court directly impacts success on it.

What are the core pillars of your program’s culture, and how do they shape both your players and your approach to coaching?

There are things that just have to happen for us—no questions asked. Off the court, our players need to be good people, good students, and good role models in the school community. That’s non-negotiable. Everyone’s going to make mistakes, but the key is learning and growing from them.

On the court, it’s the same thing—being a great teammate matters. We want our best player to value our last player off the bench. You never know who’s going to take the last shot in a game, and if we don’t value each other, we won’t succeed. The way they treat each other off the court carries over into decision-making in games. That’s the stuff that wins and loses basketball games.

As far as basketball itself, playing hard is a must. We’re going to get after it for an entire game. If you can’t play hard, you won’t fit in our system.

And we focus on fundamentals. You can’t run a good play if you can’t shoot, handle the ball, or finish at the rim. I see a lot of coaches get frustrated because their play works, but their players can’t make the shot at the end of it. Well, how much time are you actually putting into making sure they can make that shot? Can they make a right-handed layup? A left-handed layup? If all you’re doing is running plays, but your players can’t execute the basics, you’re missing the point.

That’s why we pour into our players early. We’ve got a great middle school coach, Kelly Romine, who puts in nonstop work making sure our girls are ready. That way, by the time they get to me, we’re not having to go backward.

At the end of the day, our program is built on these pillars: strong character, being a great teammate, and the willingness to get after it and play hard. Those are the things that matter most to us.

Part 2 of our interview with Coach Jan Azar runs next Saturday, February 8. We’ll explore coaching and leading Gen Z, leadership reinvention, and the evolution of women's basketball.

Q&A Resources

Coach Jan Azar ― X | Hebron Christian Academy

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