I believe “deserve” means “are worthy of, but not necessarily entitled to”.
When people say, for example, “You deserve better”, when exiting an unhealthy relationship — That would sound like, “You are worthy of, but not necessarily entitled to, a better relationship.”
That makes sense to me.
“Deserving” and “entitled” have different meanings.
“Deserving” means that one is worthy of an outcome (be it positive or negative) — not that it is owed to them.
“Entitled” is an inherent state of “deserving”, irrespective of worth or merit, that does indicate being owed something.
It’s a subtle nuance, but an important one, and in line with Maarten van Doorn’s assertion that no one deserves to suffer.