Potential and expectations are both high for the Minnesota Timberwolves after an offseason where they majorly retooled the offense with the additions of LaMelo Ball and Jonathan Kuminga, but star guard Anthony Edwards might have the most weight on his shoulders.  

Edwards has steadily improved each season, but even as he’s reached new heights within the NBA, he and the Timberwolves have failed to go the distance as a team. 

But an offseason of retooling has taken the Timberwolves to new heights after the additions of LaMelo Ball and Jonathan Kuminga and with that abundance of new talent also comes the expectation of finally getting over the hump and at least making it to the NBA Finals, if not winning the whole thing. 

However that process goes, Edwards will be the face of it. As Edwards continues to steadily improve and grow into one of the best young players in the NBA today, he's also being left with a lot more to prove. 

That's why when former player and current ESPN analyst shared his list of players under the most pressure this offseason, Edwards made the list. 

But Perkins didn't include Edwards on the list to discourage him, but to do the opposite. Perkins feels like Edwards is overlooked in the grand scheme of the talent available in the NBA and he wants Edwards to play with a chip on his shoulder to rise to even greater heights. 

"I just want Anthony Edwards to be jealous. I want Anthony Edwards to know and always have in the back of his mind that a guy he shared the floor with just two years ago In Karl-Anthony Towns just won a championship. I want Anthony Edwards to remember that he was left off because of injury the All-NBA team last year," Perkins said (via ESPN).

The pressure isn't just on Edwards, though. In Perkins' analysis, the Timberwolves as a whole are under even more pressure to perform while they know they still have Edwards. 

The franchise has enjoyed some recent success and even made it as far as the Western Conference Finals, but with a talent like Edwards and the new talent that's been added, that shouldn't be the full extent of the Timberwolves success. 

The way that Perkins views it, the Timberwolves are putting their future with Edwards at risk if they can't prove that the team can win around him and go the distance. But if that isn't the case in the near future, Perkins feels like it could prompt Edwards to seriously consider taking his talents somewhere they could translate into championships.

So just as Edwards is under pressure to prove himself to be a winner outside of the stats and accolades, the Timberwolves are under pressure to become real contenders in the NBA, and not simply just long shots each season.

"Anthony Edwards now has a true point guard and I believe he's going to win MVP," Perkins said. "Now he's under pressure because if he doesn't make it to the promised land this year, what does that relationship with the Minnesota Timberwolves look like?"