NBA fines four, not Rodman

The NBA on Tuesday fined Kurt Thomas and Chris Dudley of the Knicks and Shaquille O'Neal and Rick Fox of the Lakers for altercations during Sunday's game.

Thomas was fined $5,000 for throwing Dennis Rodman to the floor. Fox was fined $2,000 for getting into the ensuing altercation. O'Neal was fined $3,500 for pushing Dudley, who was fined $2,500 for throwing the ball at O'Neal in retaliation.

Five technicals were called.

Rodman infuriated the Knicks with his physical play, but he was not fined.

"He's a dirty player," Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy said. "I mean, he's a great player, but he plays dirty. It always amazes me that he's always the one involved, but it's always the other players that get penalized."

HORNETS: Guard Bobby Phills sat out his second consecutive game to rest a pulled groin. He is expected to miss at least three more games.

MAVERICKS: Dallas said it signed Bruno Sundov, a 7-foot-3 center from Split, Croatia, with the intention of developing him slowly.

Sundov, 19, will begin the season on the injured list because of a fractured wrist. Sundov scored eight points in 10 minutes against an American high school all-star team in the Hoop Summit game.

"He is a project," Mavs coach Don Nelson said.