Feb 12, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; U.S player Zach LaVine (8) shakes hands with World player Andrew Wiggins (22) after being announced the most valuable player after the Rising Stars Challenge basketball game against the World team at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

After ending the season with everyone watching, Andrew Wiggins and Zach Lavine know what kind of offseason they need to have to push the Minnesota Timberwolves to the next level.

After last season, the national media is giving the up and coming young Minnesota Timberwolves team a lot of hype. As they should. With two straight NBA Rookie of the Year winners in Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns and an explosive talent in Zach Lavine, along with a defensive stud at point guard in Ricky Rubio and newly drafted Kris Dunn, and key role players like Shabazz Muhammad and Gorgui Dieng, the Timberwolves are loaded with young talent.

After the hiring of top tier Head Coach Tom Thibodeau, the message was sent that it was time for this team to live up to the hype. Andrew Wiggins and Zach Lavine must have got the message, as they are putting in the extra work this offseason.

Both Wiggins and Lavine work with Drew Hanlen, the NBA skills coach and head of Pure Sweat training. Here is what Hanlen had to say about Wiggins and Lavine’s work this offseason.

Zach Lavine spent the first month of the offseason with his dad and he appears a lot stronger than he was last season. Andrew normally does 2-3 weeks of training with me every month but this year is a little different. Andrew skipped team Canada this summer because he really wanted to focus on improving as a basketball player so he could help the Timberwolves finally make the playoffs. He (Andrew) has been traveling everywhere I’ve been. We are living together in the gym; doing 2-a-days. He’s looking scary good at times. We’re putting in a lot of work on his handles and jump shooting which is something we have never addressed. Andrew is a huge competitor and it bothered him last year, one, that the Wolves weren’t in the playoffs and two, that he wasn’t an All-Star. The #1 focus: Andrew feels like the Wolves can make the playoffs this year. The #2 focus: Andrew wants to solidify himself as one of the top players in this league. Andrew and Zach have been going 3-4 hours a day and then they have weightlifting on top of that. Both of those guys are living in the gym.

It seems like these guys are putting in the extra work to refine their craft this offseason. This season is going to be very telling of what this team’s potential is going forward. Is it October yet?