James Harden lauded the Houston Rockets' display in Tuesday's 123-108 Western Conference first-round series-opening win against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Rockets were without injured star Russell Westbrook but still controlled proceedings in Orlando, where All-Star guard Harden contributed 37 points.

But Harden's focus was on the team performance as the Rockets issued an early statement of intent in the 2020 NBA playoffs.

"Our ball movement was excellent," he said. "We were just playing off the catch.

"Guys were just very confident in their shots. I think we had a lot of opportunities that we missed that were really good shots.

"We did a really good job of not turning the basketball over, which would've given them opportunities to get out in transition."

Jeff Green was also influential for Mike D'Antoni's team, scoring 22 points in his 32 minutes off the bench, during which the Rockets were +28.

Harden reserved special praise for Green and his ball-handling skills in particular.

"It's huge for us," said Harden. "Now I don't have to just dribble the basketball up. Those guards can kind of pressure me.

"He's able to dribble the ball up and get us in our offense."

Green added: "I'm just trying to find ways to impact the game, be that defensively or offensively.

"On the offensive end, we're playing together, and we're playing for each other. That's what's important, and that's how we're going to succeed."