Destiny King tends to defy labels. 

Classified as a junior, King often exudes the presence of a senior as a vocal leader for the University of Hawaii women’s basketball team.

On the court, she’ll play anywhere from point guard to power forward.

The constant, regardless of her role of the moment, is the energy she brings to the floor.

Rarely shy to make her voice heard on the court, King said taking on the role as a high-volume presence in practice and games "was something I had to step up on and be the speaker, because … I’m the loud one, obviously."

"To help my teammates, I had to bring the intensity."

Statistically speaking, King ranks second in rebounding and fourth in scoring for the Rainbow Wahine. But that intensity on both ends of the court, while harder to quantify, is of no less value.

"Destiny’s maturity over the past three years has been tremendous," UH coach Laura Beeman said.

"Destiny has always been a player that is not afraid to be vocal and kind of put you into place. She’s the one that’s going to tell you what you’re doing wrong, but she’ll also tell you what you’re doing right."

Picking up the intensity, on defense in particular, has been a theme for the Rainbow Wahine this week as they prepared for a New Year’s Eve matchup with Hawaii Pacific Wednesday at the Stan Sheriff Center.

After closing 2014 against the Sharks, the Wahine finish their nonconference schedule Friday against UNC Greensboro (5-9) before heading into Big West play next week.

The 5-foot-10 King is averaging 9.2 points and 6.3 rebounds per game and returns to the Sheriff Center coming off a productive road trip. She scored 12 points, grabbed six rebounds and hit two critical free throws in a win over Loyola Marymount, then followed with a career-high 15 points with eight boards in UH’s loss at Cal State Bakersfield.

King, who has a streak of 36 consecutive starts, was part of Beeman’s first signing class at UH. The former Long Beach Poly standout gives Beeman flexibility in the rotation by running the point or playing in the paint depending on the matchup.

"She’s the first kid I recruited when I took the job and felt like I needed to get Destiny King in order to have a successful recruiting class," Beeman said.

Although her comfort with the UH coaching staff and the program was King’s primary motivation in signing with UH, her journey to Hawaii also created a closer connection with her family in the islands. 

King’s mother, Mona Fa’amausili, grew up on the North Shore, attended Kahuku and still has relatives living in Laie. Although her mother had talked about her days in Hawaii, King hadn’t visited the islands before enrolling at UH. 

Upon arriving, she met aunts and cousins she didn’t know she had, giving her an instant cheering section and support system.

"It’s really great because me and my brothers always wanted to know our mom’s side more out in Hawaii," said King, who is of Samoan and African-American descent.

King traces her affection for basketball to when she was 4 years old. Her upbringing with brothers — eight of them — helped foster her assertiveness on the court. She has five older and three younger brothers and spent much of her youth competing with them in workouts. 

"I never got to play with girls until midway through middle school," King said. "It was always working out with my brothers, always working out with my dad. It helped me to be aggressive, more intense."

Just as King often makes her presence heard on the court, when her family attends UH’s road games "you will hear them," King said with a chuckle. 

"They’ll be right behind the bench yelling."