1on1: Denny Hamlin (cont'd)

Q: Getting away from bad tires and the track for minute, you're pretty passionate about the sport of basketball, isn't that right?

Hamlin: Yeah, I definitely do love basketball. It's just something that I would try to play every day if I could. If I can get enough people together, I like to play every day. Unfortunately, I don't get that opportunity every single day. But it's definitely something I like to do.

Q: You've got a court right in your backyard, right?

Hamlin: Yeah, I've got a court in my backyard. We play there a lot. There also are a lot of people from Motorsports Management that play; they have their own kind of league where they play at a gym indoors, and I join them every now and then, too.

Q: Describe your game.

Hamlin: I'm more of a shooter, for sure. I'm not the tallest of guys at 5-11. So definitely I'm an outside shooter type of guy.

Q: What do you follow mostly as a fan, the NBA or colleges or what?

Hamlin: A little bit of the NBA. I'm a Charlotte Bobcats fan. I have season tickets on the floor, right next to the opponents' bench at Bobcats Arena [recently renamed Time Warner Cable Arena].

Last year I didn't make but about eight games, but I wasn't a season-ticket holder then. This year I'm going to try to make every game that I can.

Q: Do you know any of the Bobcats?

Hamlin: I actually know Raymond Felton and Sean May pretty well. Raymond even came to my house one time to play basketball -- 2-on-2 with me and my roommate going against him and his buddy. And Sean May, I have a pretty close relationship with him as well.

Q: So Felton and his buddy played you and your roommate? How did that go down?

Hamlin: The truth of it was that it was a game to 15 and they spotted us nine points. But we did end up beatin' 'em.

Q: Did you hit the game-winner?

Hamlin: No, I can't lie. My roommate Austin did. But it was pretty fun.

Q: We understand you also did a nice thing last weekend in Indianapolis, where you guys gave away of Toyota Hybrid to Second Helpings, a charity organization that helps feed needy folks. Could you talk a little about that?

Hamlin: We gave away a Toyota Hybrid to Second Helpings, and this is the second event where we gave one away. What Second Helpings does is they gather up meals and distribute them to people that are chronically ill or to children's homes, homeless shelters, different places. Basically what they do is gather up excess food from restaurants, they prepare 'em, make sure they're healthy, and then send them off for good causes.

Obviously fuel prices are an issue for everyone right now, and especially for charities like that who have to run around all the time. They were hurting them a lot because they deliver so much. We thought it would be a great way for us to give back to them, because they're always giving to the community and not getting much back in return. It was a token of our appreciation, giving them a new Toyota. We also did it in Boston earlier this year, and will do it in two more cities we go to later in the year. We're glad to be able to do some stuff like that.