The Wolves are in contract discussions to bring former Gophers star Bobby Jackson back to Minnesota and back to the franchise as a player development coach to replace David Adelman, according to a league source.

Jackson starred for two seasons for that Gophers team that reached the 1997 Final Four -- or didn't, if you're the NCAA -- and played in the NBA for both Flip Saunders with the Wolves and Rick Adelman in Sacramento and Houston.

My colleague Sid Hartman phoned in the Jackson news to the sports desk late last night, too late for it to get into the paper, and a source confirmed it this morning.

Jackson was a Kings assistant coach the last two seasons -- and their basketball operations special assistant for two years before that -- before Sacramento made sweeping ownership and management changes last summer. The Kings announced in June that they were replacing their entire coaching staff, but said Jackson was the one assistant coach who would be retained in a different job.

Jackson played 123 games for Flip and the Wolves in the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 seasons and then played five seasons for Rick Adelman in Sacramento and won NBA Sixth Man award one of those seasons, in 2003.

Jackson, 40, would fill the job previously held by David Adelman, who has been promoted to full-time assistant now that Bill Bayno is gone to become Dwane Casey's first assistant in Toronto.

Expect those discussions with Jackson to be finalized and made official shortly.

The Wolves also are traveling down the same road with Washington front-office exec Milt Newton to join them in a general manager's type of role on the basketball personnel side.

Saunders interviewed Newton in Washington last week and both Newton and Wizards assistant trainer/rehab coordinator Koichi Sato are expected to come over from Washington. Sato likely will be named as the team's new strength coach.

Flip worked with both when he was the Wizards head coach.