You might be one of these people that thinks “The Star-Spangled Banner” is an inferior song to, say, “America The Beautiful” or even “Whole Lotta Rosie,” but that wouldn’t entitle you to re-invent the lyrics on the fly. But that’s what Tyrese Gibson, he of 2 Fast, 2 Furious “fame” did when he sang the anthem before Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals Wednesday. From Starpulse:

The California native took the opportunity to pay tribute to his home team – altering the patriotic tune’s lyrics from “our flag was still there” to “our Lakers were still there”.

Gibson’s switch-up was met by a mix of booing and cheers but his encouragement seemed to work – the Lakers won 103-94.

The only time this is remotely acceptable is at Turner Field, when the urge to belt out “…and the home of the Braves” is often too tempting to fight off. And maybe the Houston Rockets…but that’s it. Observe the obvious rule of thumb: if you’re unable to sing the song as it was written, don’t do it. I realize what a chore it is to put your “career” on hold for a minute and a half. And that goes for Tyrese, Natalie Cole, Roseanne, and most especially, this guy.