EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — No need for LeBron James to mince words. He was concise and efficient when underscoring the importance of Los Angeles Lakers teammate Anthony Davis.

“We can’t win without A.D.,” he said Tuesday. “Not possible.”

The Lakers had just outlasted the Toronto Raptors, 132-131, in a game every bit as close as the scoreboard showed at Crypto.com Arena.

Davis was undoubtedly the defining edge, scoring a season-high 41 points while saving his best for last: 20 points in the fourth quarter of a who-will-outlast-whom game that featured 23 lead changes and nine ties.

Davis scored 13 points in the final 2:38, including two layups and a pristine nine for nine from the free-throw line.

He also blocked Scottie Barnes’ shot in the final minute and was appropriately called the Lakers’ “defensive middle linebacker” by coach Darvin Ham.

“You can tell his body’s feeling good,” Ham said. “He’s in a good space. His energy is great. He’s not trying to force anything…He’s at a high level right now.”

Like James’ description of him, Davis was also plenty efficient while making 13 of 17 shots and 13 of 14 free-throw attempts. And as James pointed out, Davis also had six assists.

Davis declined to take much of the credit, spreading it among teammates. And sure, LeBron James had 22 points and 12 assists, and Christian Wood had another solid outing off the bench with 14 points.

“It was all of us. It wasn’t just me,” Davis said after the Lakers improved to 19-19.

It wasn’t easy against a Toronto team that made a big trade 10 days ago, shipping defensive-minded forward OG Anunoby to New York and receiving backcourt scorers RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley.

Tuesday’s game also wasn’t without controversy. Raptors Coach Darko Rajakovic was infuriated by a free-throw disparity, continually slamming a table while speaking at a post-game news conference. The Lakers were awarded 36 free throws Tuesday, including 23 in the fourth quarter, while Toronto had only 13 on the night.

“It’s outrageous,” said Rajakovic, calling it “completely B.S.”

“This is shame. Shame for the referees. Shame for the league to allow this. Twenty-three free throws for them, and we get two free throws in the fourth quarter?" he added. "How is that possible? How are you going to explain that to me?”

Rajakovic was particularly irritated that rising star Scottie Barnes (26 points) was awarded only two free throws Tuesday.

The Raptors were without starting center Jakob Poeltl (sprained ankle), and the Lakers took advantage early. Davis scored 16 points in the first quarter, attacking at will against the undersized Raptors frontcourt.

Davis, though, was the only Lakers player with more than seven points at halftime and the Lakers trailed, 53-51.

From there, it was back and forth. No lead was safe.

Four starters scored at least 20 points for the new-look Raptors (15-22), including Barrett (23) and Quickley (21).

The Lakers appeared to get on track Sunday with a hard-fought victory over the Clippers, even holding their red-hot down-the-hall rival to a commendable 103 points.

Their defense wasn’t as impressive against Toronto, but it didn’t matter. The Lakers, after all, had Davis on their side.