New Orleans Pelicans rookie Zion Williamson had a strong stretch during the team's first seeding game against the Utah Jazz on Thursday.

Williamson scored 13 points on 6-for-8 shooting as the Pels built an early lead. However, as New Orleans' offense sputtered and the lead dwindled to single digits, Williamson remained on the bench. The Pelicans lost the game, and all the focus seemed to be on Williamson's apparent minutes restriction.

Zion played on a limited basis once again on Saturday against the Los Angeles Clippers, logging just over 14 minutes of action.

Now, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2019 NBA Draft spoke about his limited playing time during a media session on Sunday:

“It's very tough, to be honest,” the Pelicans rookie told reporters. “As soon as I start to break that sweat, I look over, and that horn's for me and I have to come out of the game.”

For what it's worth, Zion Williamson noted that while the limited spurts of playing time make it hard for him to get into the flow of the game, he tries not to get bogged down in the details. Instead, he is choosing to focus on how he can contribute when he is on the floor.

It probably would not have mattered just how much Zion played on Saturday, as the Pelicans were totally outmatched by a dominant Clippers team. Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how New Orleans deals with his minutes going forward.

The Pelicans had fallen to 12th in the West prior to the start of play on Sunday, and they now have their work cut out for them in the remaining seeding games.

Williamson's playing time (or lack thereof) figures to be a storyline as New Orleans hopes to make a late playoff charge.