Jimmy Butler Says He Had Nothing to Do with Trainer Blasting Bulls After Trade

Jimmy Butler's trainer, Travelle Gaines, made news Thursday when he criticized the Chicago Bulls front office, but the three-time All-Star insisted he wasn't behind it.

"I don't control what he says," Butler said Friday, per Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times. "He's his own person. We'll talk about it [afterward] obviously, but I don't control what he says on social media. That's his. There's no right in me to tell him what he can or cannot do."

Cowley noted Gaines lashed out at Bulls general manager Gar Forman in a since-deleted tweet, saying "0-82. Worst culture in the league. I met drug dealers with better morals then their GM. He is a liar and everyone knows."

The tweet came after the Minnesota Timberwolves announced they traded for Butler and the No. 16 pick in Thursday's draft (Justin Patton). Chicago received Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn and the No. 7 pick in the draft (Lauri Markkanen).

While Gaines didn't hold back when criticizing the front office, Butler expressed thanks to the city of Chicago, the fans and the organization in an Instagram post after the trade:

News of a strained relationship between Chicago's front office and the star player is nothing new. ESPN's Ryen Russillo noted in February a member of the team's management threatened to bench Butler for Tony Snell if the Marquette product didn't acquiesce to team-friendly terms of a potential contract extension (h/t NBC Sports' Dan Feldman).

However, Russillo said then-Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau refused to bench Butler for Snell, which is fitting because Butler will now lace it up for Thibodeau in Minnesota.

Butler previously thrived in Thibodeau's defensive-oriented system as a three-time All-Defensive team member and is coming off a career-high 23.9 points a night in 2016-17. He gives the Timberwolves another go-to option alongside Karl-Anthony Towns and no longer has to worry about any dysfunction in Chicago's front office.