By dropping a sledgehammer, Adam Silver squares off against NBA’s richest owner

Adam Silver didn’t just drop the hammer on the Los Angeles Clippers. He busted out the sledgehammer and called in the wrecking ball for good measure. Make no mistake about it, the commissioner sent a message on Wednesday. Not just to the Clippers. He cc’d the entire NBA and anyone who dared to think about the words, “cap circumvention.” Among the league’s punishments to the Clippers after an investigation found that they broke league rules in order to pay Kawhi Leonard under the table: a $30 million fine; the loss of five first-round picks beginning in 2029; one-year suspensions for…