The whole a team on the rise has to learn how to win by losing tough playoff series. I feel that narrative is a bit overstated imo. Most instances that rising either needs to improve the roster or coach, get some good fortunate in terms of health, and most importantly their best players perform at their best. This year’s Nuggets team is the perfect example of that. Sure, they are motivated by the bubble loss by the Lakers in 2020, but Jokic and Murray were at their best and they got good production from Gordon, MPJ, and Bruce Brown. Those losses to Suns in 2021 and Warriors 2022 didn’t help Nuggets in 2023 that much.