He Has Things Headed in Right Direction : TeamTennis: Fred Lieberman, owner of the Newport Beach Dukes, moved from New York to Orange County and built a successful franchise.

Fred Lieberman, who seems as if he’d be more comfortable riding the A train to lunch, asks, “You have a car?”

Because the New York City subway system doesn’t include a run down Jamboree Road, you do. You hop in and start ‘er up. Some guy is talking about the potential trades by the Knicks on the radio, so Lieberman cranks up the volume.

John Starks? Forgetaboutit. Trade him.

The digital clock on the car’s dashboard clicks past 12:30 p.m. on another sunny day in Newport Beach.

At the same time, the watch on Lieberman’s wrist has just swept past 3:30. He said he can’t bring himself to change from Eastern time to Pacific. Somewhere in Manhattan, you imagine a car horn blaring and a guy bellowing out of car window, “Move your . . . truck!”

Acting on a tip from a friend to “check out what’s happening out here,” Lieberman came to Orange County in 1990 to establish a home for his new TeamTennis franchise. Knowing a thing or two about upscale neighborhoods from many years on Long Island, Lieberman took a close look around and decided that Newport Beach would serve well as home to his Dukes.

And a funny thing has happened since that first trip.

Lieberman, a Noo Yawker for all his 52 years, has begun to sink roots here in LaLa Land. As difficult as it is for Lieberman to fathom, he has started pulling up stakes in New York.

His wife recently took a new job in Minneapolis. And horror of horrors, Lieberman is thinking of selling his midtown Manhattan townhouse.

This will be Lieberman’s third summer in Newport Beach, which means he’s on the verge of becoming the most successful TeamTennis owner in county history. That’s not saying much, but, hey, you’ve got to start someplace. Two other franchises--the Anaheim Oranges in 1978 and the California Oranges in 1983--folded not long after setting up shop.

Lieberman, who said he lost money in the Dukes’ first season but made some last year, is pleased enough with the results to start expanding his county operations.

He has so many plans and deals going, it’s difficult to keep up.

He’s going to sign John McEnroe and sell out the John Wayne Tennis Club for each and every match next year.

He has exhibition matches lined up--he says he hopes to have Michael Chang playing Pete Sampras one night next fall at the Bren Center.

He’s talking with Don Andersen, the executive director of the Orange County Sports Association, about bringing the Davis Cup to the new Anaheim Arena.

He has landed Disneyland as one of some 50 sponsors of the Dukes.

And, most of all, he’s trying to get people interested in watching the team.

“I have a thing for making the Dukes successful,” Lieberman said. “I work just as hard (as the first year), but it’s better. . . . I have never worked so hard and got so little in return than doing the Dukes.”

Promoting is a tough racket.

You can be as aggressive as you want to be, but you can’t force fans come watch something called the Newport Beach Dukes play something called the Sacramento Capitols. Even Chang-Sampras can be a tough sell.

“You always run scared because you sell all your tickets at the end,” said Lieberman, who had a successful tennis promotion business in the East before selling it. “When it works, you’re surprised.”

Although the Dukes have been mildly successful on the court, and Lieberman has turned a profit, he dreams of a time when the stands are filled every night and the crowds are knowledgeable and boisterous.

“There’s only one thing I’m not happy with, and that’s the attendance,” he said. “It’s like pulling teeth to get people out. I assume I’m doing something wrong.”

When Billie Jean King helped rescue TeamTennis from overspending more than a decade ago, the league adopted a new vision. With the exception of last season, for which Jimmy Connors and Martina Navratilova signed on, most of the players in TeamTennis have been no-names.

The Dukes have followed form, signing Katrina Adams, Ronnie Bathman, Rikard Bergh and Amy Frazier for the 1992 season, which begins with an exhibition against a UC Irvine alumni team July 7 at the John Wayne Tennis Club.

“When I get a reaction at this point, people say they want stars,” Lieberman said.

Next year, he hopes to deliver McEnroe.

He can’t forget the atmosphere at the Wayne Club when Connors and the Los Angeles Strings paid a visit last summer. It was the Dukes’ only sellout last season. The tennis was exciting, with Connors and Rick Leach squaring off in the deciding singles match, and the fans were buzzing with each shot.

“It’s like Jeanie Buss (owner of the Strings) said, ‘I can’t survive without a marquee player,’ ” Lieberman said. “I need a marquee player because I’m in a cynical market. I’m so upscale that I need him (McEnroe).”

No question, Leach has been the biggest name to play for the Dukes. And he only signed on after a back injury sidelined Jorge Lozano. This season, Leach, a member of the U.S. Davis Cup team for several years, a former All-American at USC and a standout at Laguna Beach High, wanted to stay close to the ATP tour and bring his doubles ranking up.

Without Leach or McEnroe, Lieberman said the answer is an up-and-coming player such as Frazier, who is 19. A two-year veteran of the Dukes, Frazier has been moving steadily upward in the world rankings.

“You nurture them when they’re young and develop some loyalty,” Lieberman said.

One stroke of genius was to sign Greg Patton, UC Irvine’s hyperbolic coach for 13 seasons until resigning this month. If anyone could sell TeamTennis in Orange County, Patton would be the man.

Despite their different backgrounds--Lieberman, the wealthy Easterner, and Patton, the California Dreamer--their association has given the Dukes at least a vague image for some local tennis fans.

“What he means to the Dukes is that he brings a sense of enthusiasm that’s just fantastic,” Lieberman said. “His metaphors are wonderful. He’s absolutely refreshing. What you see is what you get.”

Lieberman has even spoken to Patton, who has accepted at job at Boise State, about returning for the 1993 season.

“Patton can be the coach as long as he wants,” he said.

Patton and McEnroe together in ‘93? Could staid and cynical Newport Beach stand them together?

Lieberman said he won’t rest until it happens, even if it means he has to become more and more of a Californian to get it done.