Laura Harper Rocky Widner/NBAE/Getty Images

It's Laura Harper's first WNBA game. But, from the smile on her face and her calm demeanor as she addresses the media before the Monarchs season-opening win against the Silver Stars, it would appear that Harper was a seasoned vet.

While many rookies understandably show signs of pregame nerves before and during their first-ever professional games, Harper's calm, like her contagious sense of humor, are what make her a standout, even more so than her 6-foot-4 frame.

"I just love to smile and it's just better than being tight and stressed out all the time," Harper said with her big smile.

Though she has only been in Sacramento for a short time, her engaging personality and quick-wit have bolstered the already close-knit Monarchs. In her preseason analysis of the team, Assistant Coach Monique Ambers praised the unity of the team and made sure to mention the rapid camaraderie formed between the veteran front line and the Monarchs first-round pick. Similarly, ask one of her teammates what makes Harper special and aside from her tenacious play and 2006 Most Outstanding Player credentials, the teammate is likely to smile and say, 'her sense of humor.'

That sense of humor, Harper says, comes from her family and her 22-years of life experiences.

"I think it's based on my family," Harper said still grinning. "Basically, my mom is just always happy and my brother always has jokes, so that's just how I am. I don't like to hide who I am and what I like to do. I like to laugh and joke. How can you live life any other way?"

The daughter of Haviland and Maria Harper, Laura credits her mother for her positive outlook and basketball success, although her father's hoops pedigree at George Washington University and his coaching were also important to his youngest child's development.

"My mom is definitely my biggest role model, just growing up and knowing what a strong woman was and what it takes to be independent and strong and have confidence in yourself," the University of Maryland career blocks leader said. "It’s something that has translated into something on the court and off the court. It just makes you feel good about yourself because you are doing something that you love to do and doing it well."

The confidence that Harp, as her teammates call her, exudes has existed since she was a youngster, and it's as important as anything that has made her optimistic, enthusiastic and successful.

"My mom was always telling me that I was pretty," Harper said proudly. "She instilled that confidence in me where I was just like the ultimate diva even when I was six."

Although she is talented and tall enough to be a center in the WNBA today, she wasn't always that way. That's why her self-confidence is so important.

"I wasn’t that tall growing up," Harper said. "I got cut in 6th grade. In 7th grade, I didn't really play much. In 8th grade, I grew a little bit and in 9th grade, I grew like six inches. So it was a transition process."

That process had its share of additional adversity once she reached the college ranks. In her freshman season at Maryland she suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon at practice on December 26th, 2004. The injury forced her to miss the final 23 games, including all the Terrapins’ ACC games. Like many things in life, the injury had a silver lining. It wasn't until she came back and helped her team win the 2006 NCAA Championship that she realized she could play basketball in the WNBA.

"I’m not even going to lie, that didn’t happen until college," Harper said smiling as the pregame clock wound down closer to the tip-off of her professional career. "My process has been to grow. In high school I didn’t really catch up to my body. I was playing to have fun, to laugh and have friends, so it wasn’t a big deal to me until my junior or senior year of high school. I was like, 'oh I could play in college!' And then college came, and I was put around my wonderful teammates who made me a lot better and I was like, 'hey, how about the League? I’ll give it a whirl, why not?'

"And now I’m here and I couldn’t be happier."

The Monarchs have 16 home games remaining this season and the Monarchs rookie says that seeing her and her teammates in action is essential to appreciating the WNBA.

"People don’t know. It’s kind of a foreign concept -- women’s basketball," Harper said. "Unless you watch it, you don’t have that appreciation because you really only hear it from other people. And when you watch, you realize there’s a lot of talent, there are women who can dunk, make reverse lay-ups, threes and all these other things that the guys can. So it’s empowering and it’s really motivating for other women, especially, to see our games."

Expect Great Basketball this summer at ARCO Arena and catch the Monarchs live!

The Monarchs tip-off against the Houston Comets at 7 p.m. at ARCO Arena on Friday, May 30th. Click here to buy tickets.