The text messages included references to offers to supply blue hats, mercs, blue mitsis and e's - all street names for ecstasy - and showed he had been engaged in the business of offering to sell ecstasy and making arrangements to supply the drug.
Crown prosecutor Hayley Sheridan told Judge Ingram that a sentence of 2 to 2-1/2 years' prison was appropriate but the Crown accepted Casey had a supportive family and a positive pre-sentence report and that it was his first drug offending.
She said the Crown was not opposed to home detention.
Mr Nabney said home detention coupled with community work was the appropriate outcome for his client but he accepted it should be slightly longer than one of his client's co-offenders who received six months home detention for a lesser number of transactions.
"He has clearly got the message that this is not something the courts take lightly and he has no intention of reoffending in this way again," Mr Nabney said
Mr Nabney said Casey was remorseful and until this offending he has been a "useful member of the community".
Judge Ingram said Casey had been a "very foolish, young man" who had engaged in "premeditated, commercial, greedy behaviour".
"If you were being sentenced in the United States of America for these charges, you would not be seeing the light of day and would be locked up for the rest of your days."
Judge Ingram said sending him to prison would place him in the clutches of imprisoned gang members in prison who were likely to assist him to continue drug dealing.
"I have no wish to be recruiter for drug dealing gangs in prison and home detention is far better option despite it being a difficult sentence for young men to serve."
