IBack in the 1960’s and 1970’s, basketball made a huge impact on Long Island with the New York Nets of the old American Basketball Association. Playing in long-forgotten venues such as the Commack (Long Island) Arena and the Island Garden, the team finally achieved greatness at the Nassau Coliseum with players such as Julius ‘Dr. J’ Erving and Rick Barry.

One year after merging with the NBA, the Nets packed up and moved to New Jersey. All that was left from the maverick league were the four teams that survived the merger and years full of memories.

The ABA resurfaced in 2000 as an independent minor league (red, white and blue ball included), similar to the Atlantic League, which the Long Island Ducks are a member. Five years later, the league expanded to include a number of new cities, with Long Island being one of them. A ‘Name the Team’ contest resulted in students in three different school districts selecting the Strong Island Sound as the moniker of the new club, who played their home schedule split between St. Joseph’s and Suffolk Community College (Selden).

After reaching the ABA Final Four in their inaugural campaign, the Sound reached the second round of last year’s playoffs before being ousted by the eventual league champions, the Vermont Frost Heaves.

As the team prepares for their third season, the outlook is very good after an offseason of constant promoting and marketing. Co-owners Darren Cioffi and Michele Wuestman have been heavily involved in bringing the team to the forefront.

“Suffolk County’s awareness of us has risen tremendously from our offseason appearances and community involvement,” said Cioffi. “We have become more and more visible,” Wuestman added.

Part of that marketing program includes the Sound Van, which has been making the rounds in the neighborhoods promoting the team and tickets for the upcoming season. “The Sound Van is going to be used as a promotional vehicle for our team, much like radio stations do,” Cioffi continued. “It will be at all community events that we attend.”
The team has also run numerous clinics and camps, which Sound assistant coach Greg Cerillo, Sr. was behind. “The accessibility to our coaching staff and players is what makes this important,” he said.

The organization is hoping that the work done during the summer will translate into a bigger fan base. In the past, attendance has fluctuated. On one particular night last season, 1,000 fans were present to see the Sound take on the Maryland Nighthawks and their 7’9” center, Sun Ming Ming.

Making their games an affordable option with a family atmosphere, the Sound have given sports fans a local team to call their own. With the team mascot, Sheykan Bayke, and the Sound Dancers, there is nothing minor about it. This is professional basketball with local talent taking on opponents with the same qualifications. With ticket prices either $7 or $10, this is a bargain in any market, especially New York.

The team will play all 18 of their home games at Suffolk Community College in the 2007-08 season. “I have to give credit to our ownership and coach (Dytanya) Mixson,” Cerillo said. “They’ve utilized our local resources and we’re going to build fans up one, two, three at a time. Long Island is a tough market. There are so many options. We have doubled and tripled our fan base from year one to year two. That’s what we’re looking to do again this year.”

(Joe Pietaro is the Editor-in-Chief of “New York Sportscene” magazine.)