One of Freeman's contributions was his mentoring of countless younger musicians such as Corey Wilkes and Ben Paterson as well as his steadfast support of what he liked to call "hardcore jazz" (as he still did in a 2001 article in DownBeat.)
Freeman mentored many young musicians, including Corey Wilkes and Ben Paterson, and consistently championed the style he called "hardcore jazz," which he continued to advocate for in a 2001 DownBeat article.