The UK's Homegrown Globetrotter

Professional freestyler. Guinness World Record Holder. Dunk contest winner. Andrew Wilding certainly has a lot of attributes to his name already; I sat down with him to discuss his most memorable moments to date as one of the most sought after basketball freestylers around.

· First things first, where did you get those hops of yours and have you got any going spare?

“Thanks, I get asked that question a lot and my answer is always the same….practice! People assume I'm on a strict program or am constantly lifting weights in the gym, but the truth is that if you practice squat jumps you'll improve at squat jumps, and if you practice dunking, you'll improve your dunking skills. There's no real science behind it for me, just hard work. Also, sorry but I don't have any hops going spare, so go get your own”

· You’ve worked with some big names – Under Armour, JD Sports, and Nickelodeon to name but a few. Any projects or clients that really stand out as enjoyable to work for?

“Every job is enjoyable in its own way but if I had to name some that really stood out to me I would have to say when I was 17 and just getting into freestyling as a full time professional. I had a series of stage shows for Essex Police, performing in theatres all over the county showcasing my skills to some 2000+ young people. After the performance we spoke with them about drugs, alcohol, knife crime and bullying; and in turn how they could make the right life choices when confronted with those issues. I found it so nerve racking initially, but after a while just felt comfortable helping young people think about the positive impact they can have. From this I was actually scouted to have my own hit TV show on Nickelodeon which allowed me to perform and present not only on live television, but all over the UK.”

· What is the one trick or dunk you wish you could perform but have yet to master?

“As a freestyler and dunker I am always trying to master new moves and dunks. Right now I'm working on a 3 ball juggling combo trick which is a lot harder than it sounds. I throw 2 balls in the air at the same time, then do a 360 degree spin and throw the third ball back up in between the other 2. I then throw them back up and hope they bounce off of one another, all whilst catching the third ball behind my back. Repeated this creates the juggling aspect of the trick. It's a tough one, but you should try it sometime.

The dunk I am currently trying to master is a ‘double up’ dunk, where you have a teammate standing under the basket holding the ball over their head. You then jump over them whilst taking the ball out of their hands and putting it between your legs before dunking (that's the plan anyway). I've pulled it off a handful of times, but the goal is to land it in a dunk contest where it really matters!”

· Obviously you have a wide range of moves up your sleeve that a lot of younger players want to pull off; what would your best tips be for them?

“My advice to young players or anyone who would like to learn the skills would be to watch myself or other freestyles from around the world. Try and simplify what we do when you need to, but be sure to use your own style and flair to put your own mark on it. Try to be creative but make sure you enjoy practicing the skills! You never know, one day I might be coming to you for freestyle advice….”

· What’s the plan once you stop performing? Skills clinics? Dunk contest judge?

“So I've not got too much planned for life after freestyling, simply because I want to be performing for as long as possible. I absolutely love what I do, but once it's all said and done I'd love to be an agent; giving other talented people the opportunity to perform their skills on the biggest stages around the world.”

· What's in the pipeline at the moment, anything you care to mention?

“There is always an adventure just around the corner, my next one is slightly different to usual. I'm actually catching a flight to Germany tomorrow where I will be showing off my ‘uppers’ (controlling the ball with my head in various different ways)’. I'll be disguised as a football freestyler along with 15 others, as part of a flash mob outside a popular football stadium on game day. It'll be a sweeping visit just for the night, but I'm back in Germany again in a couple of weeks performing the half time entertainment for a FIBA basketball event.”

· Obviously your routines require a lot of creativity and perfect execution has anything ever gone wrong and what did you do to play it off?

“I've had a few mistakes in my time, usually down to sheer difficulty of the moves. I'm usually good at countering drops into moves so that nobody even notices. In fact, one of my fellow freestyler has nicknamed me ‘The Recovery King’. However there are times where it's an obvious mistake and in those cases I just have to hold my hands up, but that spurs me on to try and pull off some tougher, more impressive moves.”

· Which professional player/freestyler has been your biggest influence and why?

“This is an easy one for me, Tommy Baker! When I was young I would watch everything Tommy ever did; I learnt his moves that I liked most and tried to put my own unique mark on them. Tommy isn't as active anymore and obviously there are plenty of freestyles out there, but Tommy remains one of my favourites. I find inspiration from lots of different freestylers, because it's just a culmination of different qualities they all have. Nowadays with social media it's quick and easy to stay up to date with everything, however it does mean the originality from some freestylers has suffered. I'm always trying to think outside the box with my moves and it seems to be paying off.”

Check out Drew’s dunks tricks and freestyle moves on his Instagram page

@AndrewWilding