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Smooth-talking heartthrob of VH1’s hit summer series “Hit the Floor,” McKinley Freeman hypnotized viewers as star basketball player ‘Derek Roman’ of the L.A. Devils.

Born and raised outside of Chicago in the college town of Champaign, Illinois, McKinley started as a basketball player for the University of Illinois. From an all-star basketball player, he then found himself working for IBM doing worldwide marketing and business development. With these two completely different paths in hand, he then reached a crossroad in his life where he had to decide whether to stay where he was, or take the plunge to follow his heart, thus leading to his first audition where he landed a role on ABC’s “All My Children.” Despite his late entry into the acting world, Freeman has already established himself through his ever-growing resume. With appearances on award-winning shows such as ABC’s “General Hospital’ and NBC’s” Days of our Lives,” McKinley has begun an era for himself. He continues to shine with a role on FOX’s “Bones” as well as the feature film END OF WATCH alongside stars such as Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Peña.

When he’s not filming, McKinley enjoys playing basketball, cooking and working out doing various forms of boxing, kickboxing and martial arts, which include Bojuka, Jeet Kundo, Muay Tai and much more. Also being an active poet, he often finds himself writing whenever he feels inspired, which led to his first self-published e-book. Additionally, he is involved with Covenant House and the Boys & Girls Club of America, seeking to use his basketball skills to help children. It’s to no surprise that his never-ending talent has led McKinley to where he is today.

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