TEXT OF THIS NOTE, WRITTEN IN APRIL, 1999, READS: 

Michael,

Your letter was touching.  As a coach, your main vision is helping young people develop. I hope that you learn a set of values that will help you in the coaching field or any other profession. Honesty, loyalty & integrity are a few of the things to develop within yourself – everyday, all the time! 

Michael, please learn from my situation!! Everything happens for a reason – the Good Lord has a plan for all of us. He has a plan for my family and he has a plan for you.  Be true to your heart, work hard, have passion, laugh at yourself, and enjoy life…and treat people the way you would like to be treated. 

I wish you luck. 

John Calipari

Michael Wade gives the background on Coach's note, ten years later, August, 2009:

At the time that I wrote the note, I was 16 years old. Even though I have lived in NJ my whole life, the only reason I became a Nets fan was because of Coach Cal. I started following him when I was in sixth grade (1995) and he was coaching at UMass. My best friend and I went to the Final Four the year later since it was at the Meadowlands, and since he was a huge Kentucky fan. From that point in '96, I knew that I wanted to get into coaching when I grew up.
 
When Cal got the Nets job in the summer of '96, I decided to call the Nets office one afternoon to attempt to speak with Coach Cal about how to get into coaching when I was older. His secretary took a message. Well, two nights later, I almost fell off the kitchen chair when my mom picked up the phone during dinner and said that John Calipari was on the phone. I sprinted into my bedroom to take the call - here I am, a mere eighth grader talking on the phone with the head coach of the NJ Nets.  I was so impressed that Cal actually took the time out of his day to call me back and ask how he could help.
 
My parents got divorced after I finished third grade, and I have never seen my dad since that time. He was an alcoholic, and my mom had decided that she and I couldn't live with him anymore. Although he tried to write to me before I graduated college, I could not bring myself to write back because I felt like he abandoned both of us and missed out on some of the most important years of my life. Needless to say, I spent a large part of my childhood growing up without a male figure to emulate and learn from, even though I owe everything to my mom for doing such a great job raising me to be the person I am today.

Basketball filled that void in my life, and I really admired Coach Cal and aspired to be like him when I grew up. When he was fired from the Nets, I remember feeling devastated, wondering how they could do that to him. My immediate reaction was to write Coach Cal a letter and tell him the above story about how much of an impact he had on me growing up, as well as sympathizing with him about his current situation.  Once again, Cal responded with such a positive message. I remember reading the note, saying to myself, "Cal just lost his job and he takes the time to write a note to inspire me." Two simple things, a phone call and a note, meant the world to me as a young kid.
 
I have been fortunate to stay in touch with Coach over the years. I ended up getting a job in the business world upon graduating from Seton Hall four years ago. I haven't been able to get coaching out of my system though, and I stay involved by serving as a volunteer varsity assistant at a local Catholic high school.

-BB-