Herman Jesse Branson (January 7, 1942 – November 2, 2014) was a retired American basketball player.Born in Graham, North Carolina, he played collegiately for Elon University. He was 6 feet 8 inches (2.03 m) tall.He was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2nd round (18th pick overall) of the 1965 NBA Draft.He played for the 76ers (1965–66) in the NBA for 5 games and for the New Orleans Buccaneers (1967–68) in the ABA for 78 games.Branson died on November 2, 2014.