(Andrew quickly tires of being asked “how many fingers am I holding up?” at a press conference)

I’m not sure how much credibility Rick Majerus has left following his flip-flop with USC earlier in the year, but the lengths to which he’s allegedly gone to bury a former player are astonishing. From the Associated Press.

Former Utah coach Rick Majerus reportedly told NBA executives a few weeks ago that Bogut has a degenerative eye disease. So besides the usual questions about his background, his strengths and weaknesses, the 7-foot Australian center from Utah found himself discussing his eyesight and his former coach during a predraft news conference.

Bogut, who did not get along well with Majerus, said he hasn’t spoken with his former coach since the rumor circulated. And when asked about his relationship with Majerus, Bogut responded tersely: ”Fine.”

The same goes for his eyesight. It’s fine, Bogut said.

”If every person who wears a contact lens in the United States has a degenerative eye disorder, I think you’d have a lot of sick people,” he said. ”I’m not going to go blind in two years, mate.”

Besides reportedly spreading the rumor about Bogut’s eyesight, Majerus told the Milwauke Journal Sentinel that North Carolina forward Marvin Williams will be the best player in the draft. Is the former Utah coach crashing Bogut’s stock?

”Not really,” Bogut said. ”If people believe the rumors that are floating around, that’s up to them. But I know it’s not true. There are no problems between me and him. I don’t have a degenerative eye disorder.”